HN Explorer

NFT(s) are just money laundering

30 points by AboveTheGame ↗ HN
I think it’s highly laughable no one has come to this conclusion so far, and moreover, that there tries to be an explanation beyond this… there is not some value here or even any joke value, it’s just money laundering. In many cases, these transfers are the front for a drug transaction or arms. It’s confusing why this angle is not being covered when it’s full-stop the entirety of all reasons behind these transactions, which are in essence, merely used to hide the actual transaction being performed.

19 comments

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colesantiago
> NFT(s) are just money laundering...

Would love to see some strong sources for this strong claim...

xkapastel
Because it isn't true. There's some money laundering, sure, just like there is in anything that involves money. But if you actually spend time in NFT communities it's not hard to find real people who are spending money either because they like the token, or because they think they can flip it for a higher price later.
werdnapk
I'd wager most are in the latter group... trying to flip for a higher price later.
packetlost
While not a part of the community myself and it being hard to judge people's intent, it really does seem artistic subsets of the community genuinely want to support their peers. For context, I follow a bunch of NFT photographers on Twitter (most of them I followed before NFT was a thing) and the community seems really positive. I have absolutely no interest in feeding the environmental disaster that is ETH, but I recognize some people see it as a legitimate way to support creators.
cosmotic
Like the token, or like what the token represents?
chucksta
Doesn't seem to matter with other collectibles
washedup
Thanks for the Friday humor!
tendencydriven
> It’s confusing why this angle is not being covered when it’s full-stop the entirety of all reasons behind these transactions

This is a bold claim that I would love to see some evidence of. The vast majority of the transactions are people trying to make a quick buck, not people involved in the trade of drugs or weapons. I don't doubt that this is taking place, but I highly doubt that it is the "entirety of all reasons behind these transactions".

seibelj
I work in crypto and know a lot of crypto-wealthy. Crypto Punks are truly a symbol of wealth, like a high-end watch. There may be money laundering in NFTs (just like in the art market) but there legitimately are collectors and those preparing for a potential future of digital metaverses where NFTs could be worn, displayed, etc.

Check out Crypto Slam for real-time stats https://cryptoslam.io/

A lot of the volume comes from games that use NFTs for assets (like Axie Infinity and Loot). I foresee more games using NFTs.

gverrilla
You are not the first the come to this conclusion, which is wrong by the way. First because what they are now is perhaps less important than what they can become in the future. Second because there's other uses including speculation, crypto inclusion, art, fun and marketing, to mention some I know of. Get some knowledge before making assumptions and laughing at people ;)
sva_
> I think it’s highly laughable no one has come to this conclusion so far,

This kind of discussion about NFTs being money laundering is taking place in literally every single post related to NFTs on this board.

spicybright
NFT's don't introduce any new channels for money though. It's business as usual as far as the actual transfer of cash goes.

Can you provide some example scenerio of how one would launder money?

sva_
I imagine that someone could create an NFT, then use their illegally acquired money (from selling drugs, or whatever) to buy the NFT pretending to be someone else, then claim their income is from being an artist, rather than, say, a drug dealer.

I mean I'm sure it takes place, but I'd claim it's the minority. There are actually a lot of 'legit' people into NFTs, be it to collect them, or just speculatively buy them to flip them at a profit.

Comevius
It's just another asset class. In this late stage of capitalism there are only perpetually poor and rich people left, and this kind of tacky and vacuous abstract commodified scarcity has an appeal.

Owning everything is a popular sport these days, at least these useless web links don't put homes out of reach for millions of families.

asdz
so people launder money too, why are you using it? it will depreciate your currency value also, have you heard of 90% of circulating US note have drug trace on it?
myWindoonn
Sure. A large amount of expensive art is sold in order to facilitate money laundering, and NFTs are expensive art.
dropnerd
- 2013: Bitcoin is just money laundering

- 2017: Ethereum is just money laundering

- 2020: DeFi is just money laundering

- 2021: NFTs are just money laundering