A Q&A with ChangeNOW’s Mike Ermolaev about NFTs and DeFi

We had a chance to speak with Mike Ermolaev, Head of PR at ChangeNOW, about the NFT sphere that is sweeping the crypto world, its nuances, and another popular segment of DeFi.

ChangeNOW is a non-custodial crypto and exchange platform that supports over 400 crypto assets, about 60 fiat currencies – a total of m

More then 70,000 exchange pairs. It keeps a finger on the pulse of crypto innovations in order to make them accessible to users in the simplest way possible. It was therefore very interesting to hear first-hand from someone from a crypto company like this.

• We are apparently in the midst of the next-generation Internet revolution that includes NFTs. That’s why we would like to focus our interview on this next big thing. How do you see the NFT market at present?

Non-fungible tokens are bringing together the physical and digital worlds and are certainly the next big thing. When Zuckerberg announces the arrival of NFTs on Instagram, while Madonna changes her Twitter profile picture to show the Bored Ape NFT, you realize the significance of a new technology as it is being adopted at such a high level.

Nevertheless, the initial hype has somewhat faded. According to analysts, one in three minted NFTs currently turn into dead collections with little or no trade activity. The trend over time indicates, however, that the proportion of minted NFTs that are profitable is increasing, while the percentage of minted NFTs that are dead collections is decreasing. What does that mean? This could mean that the NFT market is maturing and that innovative projects are flourishing, but cash grabs do not have as much success.

• What is the ChangeNOW approach to NFTs?

We have recently added support for NFTs in our NOW Wallet and are about to launch NFT support in NOW Tracker. You can send, sort, view, and send collections using the wallet app. NOW Tracker allows you to monitor NFT assets performance.

In addition, ChangeNOW was among the first crypto platforms to list ApeCoin as soon as it was released. In order to add APE to their portfolios, users do not have to register or provide any personal information as our platform is non-custodial.

We sometimes give our users NFTs for free. In particular, our Christmas NFT giveaway was well received by the crypto community. By the way, we advocate green NFTs and ours were minted on Tezos. Tezos uses the Proof-of-Stake model, which uses over two million times less energy than Ethereum, making it more eco-friendly for creating NFTs.

Also, there’s an interesting story about how we obtained an NFT that will be a part of our upcoming event. You may have heard about Compound Labs mistakenly giving away 280,000 of its COMP coins last year.  Our anti-money laundering system prevented the exchange of 45,505 COMPs (currently valued at over $6 million) of these missed coins, and we returned the coins to Compound. Compound awarded us a special NFT in appreciation for helping to return a significant portion of its drained crypto.

• What can one do to avoid pitfalls when investing in NFTs?

Do some research first, and then do some more research if you’re serious about investing in NFTs. You could make a mistake in a matter of seconds. The NFT industry is full of scams, so you should be very cautious.

It’s also better to view NFTs as a long-term investment so you can reap the benefits of it for a long period of time. Don’t sell them too soon.

And the most important thing is to ensure your NFTs are stored securely. Don’t become another victim of hacking like some NFT holders. It is best to use a non-custodial wallet such as NOW Wallet to secure your NFTs, since you will only be able to access them.

• Would you have anything to recommend to beginners who are looking to create and sell their first NFTs?

There are many things you need to know before creating your NFT. You should first decide whether you really want it.

If you’re concerned about the environment, for instance, you should be aware that the NFT industry consumes a lot of energy, depending on which blockchain is used to make it. Hence, carbon emissions from your NFT can have a significant effect on the environment.

If you still decide to go on with your own NFT, you’ll need to choose an NFT marketplace. The platform may offer a free minting service, but it will charge a percentage of the sale price. Another option is to charge the user a fee up front, which usually ranges from $50 to $150.

Among specific marketplaces, Rarible is a good place to start. It places great emphasis on decentralization and operates across Ethereum, Flow, and Tezos blockchains.

• There’s another area we’d like to touch on. What are your thoughts on DeFi? From your perspective as a PR professional, what is its future? Are there many DeFi coins available for exchange on ChangeNOW?

It is safe to say that DeFI is a revolution in the financial services industry, and I am confident that decentralized finance will replace most financial services companies as we know them today. DeFi eliminates the middleman from the financial services industry. Regulators are now turning their attention to DeFi, claiming they want to protect investors from fraud. Yet it seems that they are mainly concerned with controlling it. Answering your question regarding the DeFi projects on ChangeNOW – yes, we have added support for a lot of them recently to meet the growing demand.