Behind the scenes: Impacts of NFTs in the crypto universe
This article is an interview between myself (Tyrn) and Patrick Stanley (pws), the founder of Freehold, it is part of the behind the scenes challenge where Freehold community members get the chance to interview the Stacks community from behind the scenes.
I was lucky enough to get a chance to interview the founder of Freehold himself Patrick Stanley on the impacts of NFTs in the crypto universe. The following interview was conducted over discord and to enhance cohesion and coherence, it has been partially edited.
Tyrn: So how did you get to be involved with cryptocurrency?
pws: In 2012 I started diving down the rabbit hole of asking what makes money valuable, and Bitcoin was becoming big at the same time. I didn’t go fulltime into crypto until 2017 when I started working at Blockstack (now Hiro) as their Head of Growth. I loved that they were building on Bitcoin because it was like building on really reliable bedrock, and that appeals to me.
Tyrn: What was your first crypto related project?
pws: Bitcoin. Then Stacks.
Tyrn: How did you first found out about NFTs in the crypto space?
pws: Fred Wilson wrote a post on “rare pepes”. I take his writings seriously. I am not a big collector though and I don’t really purchase NFTs but I remember that post.
Tyrn: Where did you buy your first NFT collection (if you did), under which blockchain was the NFT?
pws: Still haven’t bought one, but I will if something cool shows up. A lot of the art is kitschy in the space, so it would take something that really speaks to me.
Tyrn: Do you see STX bringing NFTs to BTC going forward? If so, can NFTs on BTC be competitive with other blockchains such as ETH in the NFTs sector?
pws: Yes definitely. Boom Wallet is looking to mint NFTs that yield Bitcoin via the Stacking function, which would give artists ongoing funding for anchoring their piece of culture to Bitcoin. Stacking (STX yield BTC when locked) really makes NFTs much better…it’s like butter, it makes everything better. There’s another team that’s figured out how to ensure the artist gets paid every time it’s sold. For me, I know BTC will be here 100 years from now so if I’m buying a collectible, I’d like it to be anchored to Bitcoin…which is the ultimate truth layer.
Tyrn: 2021 has surely seen NFTs going crazy, do you see them going far beyond 2021?
pws: I think they’ll crash in popularity a bit then resurge. I also think they will be used for things beyond art, including financial products, software licenses, etc.
Tyrn: Do you think NFTs can positively change the crypto universe?
pws: Sure they bring digital scarcity to digital goods. They’d be perfect for a VR world in the future as well.
Tyrn: What impacts might NFTs have in both the financial world and crypto space?
pws: They made their way to high culture very quickly, and allowed struggling artists to make money.. that’s a signal to me that they help expand the pie for culture creating people where there otherwise, wasn’t a global market for happening otherwise. That’s cool. I think they could represent tranches of debt or bonds in the near future (especially on Stacks), and that could unlock some cool new capabilities for DeFi apps.
Tyrn: What advice, if any would you give to newbies interested in NFTs?
pws: Make your own before you buy. You’ll learn how they work.
Tyrn: In anyway do you think NFTs can help in the growth of stacks 2.0?
pws: Yes. Creators being highly generative and creative on Stacks is good for Stacks and Bitcoin.
Tyrn: Any thoughts about Openriff, a Stacks based NFT marketplace still under development?
pws: Wishing them luck, they should consider joining the accelerator at stacks.ac.
Tyrn: It was nice talking to you, thank you very much for your time
pws: — — — — — — Thanks for the questions.
