To anyone not immersed in the NFT world, it might seem strange to hear of some NFTs being labelled blue chip. In traditional markets, blue chip refers to companies and stocks that are of the highest quality, widely recognized and with a strong track record. In other words, they are safe investments that have been around for a while.
NFTs, by contrast, simply have not existed long enough to have what would pass for blue chip status in more mainstream markets. Nonetheless, the blue-chip descriptor is widely used in the NFT space to denote that an item has a high status and is highly desirable.
And, provided that crypto as a whole is here to stay, then it follows that certain non-fungible tokens will retain value over time. This is particularly plausible when you take into account the crossover between NFTs and the art world. Given that traditional art markets contain blue chip items, why should the same not be true of digital art markets?
Even in the event that the focus of NFTs was to shift away from art and design, and they become valued instead for their utility (acting, for example, as membership passes, means of transporting personal data, or as digital deeds), it still seems likely that early, experimental items will be of historical interest to collectors.
Relatedly, an aspect of note about NFTs is that they can blur the boundaries between art and utility. An example of this would be Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC). Some people might argue against BAYC being good art, but that’s a subjective view, and the fact remains that BAYC’s visuals were created by an artist and that many buyers like the design work. Put simply, it may not appeal to everyone, but it’s art.
But, on top of that, BAYC NFTs act as keys to a network that has delivered airdrops of further NFTs and a related token (ApeCoin), and access to real-life events. Holders of BAYC NFTs will also find themselves with whitelisted places to buy from new, non-BAYC related NFT projects, and with access to otherwise closed Discord servers where they can rub shoulders with influential participants in the worlds of crypto, NFTs and art.
While this can all start to sound a little elitist and aloof, it serves as an illustration of the in-flux nature of the NFT space, in which no-one is entirely sure of the…
