UnionBank of the Philippines introduces new NFT trading platform
Philippine banking giant UnionBank has thrown its hat into the non-fungible token (NFT) race by launching a trading platform for digital collectibles. The platform is the brainchild of UBX, the bank’s fintech arm, in collaboration with art-tech startup Unit 256 Ventures.
Called “Artifract,” the platform is billed as the Philippines’ first tokenized NFT platform, and uses a first-of-its-kind “token factory technology” that allows tokenization of real or digital assets on distributed ledgers.
A key feature of UBX’s offering is the “fractionalization” of collectibles, allowing beginners and enthusiasts alike to participate in the NFT markets. Through fractionation, one NFT piece can be owned by multiple people in a move designed to be cost-effective.
“Our participation in digitization and fractionalization of art is very much in line with our goal of financial inclusion. The bedrock of Artifract is inclusion, and through this process, art ownership is no longer within the exclusive province of the upper class, but is now brought closer to the average Filipino, said John Januszczak, CEO of UBX.
Erica Dizon-Go, head of the business fintech group at the bank, noted that people “don’t need to be expert traders for NFTs” because of the platform’s seamless interface, which allows users to grasp the concept in no time.
NFT adoption in the Philippines is reaching frenetic levels, with both retail and institutional players getting in on the action. In the midst of the pandemic, Filipinos turned to NFT gaming platform Axie Infinity in droves to boost their earnings, while others began speculating in digital currencies.
Dizon-Go stated that the future is still bright for the industry and “we will continue to see more platforms where people build their NFTs and put them on the market.”
UnionBank’s unwavering support for digital assets
The launch of the NFT service is not the first time UnionBank has explored virtual assets. In August, the bank announced the launch of a digital currency exchange function in the app. The move will allow users to buy, sell and hold virtual currencies directly from the bank’s mobile application without using third parties.
“At the same time, we also recognize that cryptocurrency has been one of the services that many customers are already looking for, especially the younger generation, and this demand was accelerated by the pandemic,” according to the bank’s head of digital assets. markets.
In the Philippines, Maya and a number of digital banks are pivoting toward offering digital asset services under the watchful eyes of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the country’s central bank, which is the industry’s main regulator.
See: The presentation of the BSV Global Blockchain Convention, Buzzmint: Elevating NFTs
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