NFT-collateralized loans? 🧐; Centralized crypto exchanges experienced record growth & volumes 🚀; Indian neobank banks $86M💸🇮🇳

Good Morning FinTech, December 30

Good day Everyone,

And happy Thursday! Whether you’re working or enjoying your time off, I hope that your week has been great thus far. And what’s a better way to end a year on a great note if not having a nice read. So here’s a final mix of 3 great FinTech stories for 2021:

NFT-collateralized loans? 🧐

The news 🗞 Kraken CEO Jesse Powell said the exchange's forthcoming non-fungible token (NFT) platform will provide services to allow customers to extract additional value from their collectibles. What? 🤔

Elaborating on the above, Powell told Bloomberg News that Kraken plans to offer custody services for NFTs, as well as the ability to use NFTs as collateral for loans. 

Phase 1 👉 Phase 3 👉 The co-founder of one of the most prominent crypto exchanges called the functional use of NFTs, such as NFT-collateralized loans, "phase three" of the growing ecosystem for digital art and collectibles.

Phase one was speculation and phase two was buying art in a way that directly supported creators, according to Powell. 

Jumping on the bandwagon 🚂 One must note that the news from Kraken isn’t surprising at all and the crypto exchange isn't the only exchange betting on another NFT boom.

Competitors including Coinbase, FTX, and Binance all have launched or plan to launch their own NFT marketplaces. 

But what does this all mean? Here’s the takeaway👇🏼