FTX.US Launches NFT Minting Platform

Crypto derivatives exchange FTX launched a minting platform for non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on its U.S. version today, the exchange’s founder and CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, tweeted.

• “Make your own NFTs,” he tweeted, followed by a fire emoji, the link to the minting platform and an NFT he minted as an example.
• The NFTs will be built cross-chain on Solana and Ethereum, Bankman-Fried said. Deposits, including those of NFTs not built on FTX.US, and withdrawals will open up in a couple of weeks, he tweeted.
• The move deepens the exchange’s competition with NFT-focused platforms like OpenSea and Rarible, which have seen their daily trading volumes soar in recent months, as well as Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange.
• FTX’s U.S. and global sites previously included NFT marketplaces, but did not allow users to mint their own tokens. To list NFTs, creators would have to get in touch with the exchange.
• A few NFTs have already been minted on the FTX.US platform, including one that asks whether NFTs are a “tulipmania,” referring to a speculative market bubble in the Netherlands in the 17th century.
• The platform subsequently introduced a one-time fee of $500 after being spammed by pictures of a fish.

• Bankman-Fried’s test NFT sold for $270,000 around 06:15 UTC (2:15 a.m. ET) on Tuesday, according to the FTX.US site.
• The latest bid on Bankman-Fried’s example NFT is $1,100 at the time of writing. The work is the word “Test” written on a white background.
• In July, FTX was valued at $18 billion after a $900 million funding round.

See also: FTX.US Aiming to Offer Crypto Derivatives Trading in Less Than a Year: Report

UPDATE (SEPT. 6, 14:52 UTC): Adds introduction of one-time fee.

UPDATE (SEPT. 7, 07:31 UTC): Adds Bankman-Fried’s test NFT sold.