Did Trump just make millions off an NFT collection? - Episode 328 - by cryptohunt.it

Did Trump just make millions off an NFT collection?

Welcome to a new year and to the Cryptohunt Jam, where we continue to spend a minute a day explaining the intersection of exciting new technologies and your world. As always: In plain English.

Former US-president Donald Trump just released his own NFT collection. It's a set of 45000 NFTs, digital images showing the man in all kinds of heroic costumes. Why 45000? Most likely a play on him being the 45th president.

The collection works like most others: Trump makes money from people buying an original NFT from him. Some of those are considered more rare than others. This is because of so-called traits: Certain NFTs may feature the same clothing and background as others, while others may be more unique. The more rare an NFT, the more expensive, in theory at least.

So - why did he do this? Almost certainly for the money. Financially, he's had a pretty rough time it turns out. According to recently released tax returns, the former president was most successful at inheriting money - not making it himself. But things turned a corner with his rising popularity after the election, with him being able to cash in on his personal brand. Now, he seems to capitalize on it a bunch more with those NFTs.

Further proof? A single wallet address immediately minted 10,000 NFTs out of the collection. Probably no coincidence, but that address also snagged most of the rare collectibles. So who does it belong to? Well, hard to say definitively, but we'll let you take a super wild guess here.

But you know what? The Obamas likely made triple-digit millions from selling books. Bill and Hillary Clinton made over $150m from public speaking gigs, and that's even before Hillary ran for President. So who are we to judge? The job is hard, let them have some fun too.

Fact is, though, that the Trump NFTs have created a significant amount of volume on Polygon, the blockchain they are using. And arguably, many of these users might be new to blockchains. In our mind that is a win - regardless of politics.

Wait, a win, regardless of politics? That's still a thing? Cheers to more of that in 2023. Happy New Year!

This podcast is produced by Cryptohunt.it, the easiest place to learn all about Web3. Copywriting is done by Arndt Voges, Social Media is done by Brett Holleman, design is done by Carmen Rincon, and my name is Christian Byza, Co-Founder of Cryptohunt and I am your host of this daily show.

Disclaimer: This podcast references our opinion and is for information purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Do your own research and seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.