BPI becomes first Portuguese bank to launch NFT platform
Portuguese Investment Bank (BPI) has established itself as the first bank in Portugal to launch a platform for buying and selling NFTs. The platform, called D-VERSE, was launched last Friday and focuses on virtual art collectibles.
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D-VERSE
Thanks to BPI’s progressive stance on blockchain, its clients can now access exclusive digital art collectibles through D-VERSE.
The inauguration of the new platform was celebrated with the release of “Shifting Horizons”, a digital art collection by Julien Raffin. Curated by Ephemeral Ethernal, a Web3 project founded by Portuguese artist Alexandre Farto, the collection reflects on humanity’s relentless pursuit of progress at any cost.
BPI: Innovation at the Forefront
D-VERSE offers BPI customers access to a primary market for direct artist auctions and a secondary market for trading collectibles with other users. Francisco Barbeira, a BPI Administrator, highlighted the platform’s distinctiveness, stating:
“D-VERSE stands out for its ease of use and the familiar digital transaction experience. The custody of collectibles on the platform, denomination in euros, and curation dimension are key differentiators from existing market offerings.”
With over 900,000 digital banking users, the banking institution has made significant investments in enhancing customer experience and launching pioneering projects like BPI VR in 2022 and now D-VERSE.
A crypto haven
The launch of D-VERSE represents a significant foray for NFTs in Portugal. Over the last couple of years, the country has become one of the largest crypto hubs in the world, thanks to tax perks for foreigners and its forward-thinking legislation regarding crypto assets.
Portuguese citizens are also exempted from paying any taxes related to NFTs. However, NFT-related ventures have yet to garner the attention of the Portuguese public.
Charitable organization Santa Casa was forced to shut down Artentik, a platform dedicated to selling NFT artifacts, after investing half a million euros. Almost two years after its launch, Artentik failed to generate any substantial sales volume.
Negative feedback
Replying to the announcement on Sapo, one of the users stated:
“Anyway, I’m astonished at how they convinced BPI to get into NFTs. Only a few will make money initial and those who come later will realize that…”
Time will tell if BPI and its D-VERSE platform will manage to succeed where Artentik failed. However, if we consider the announcement’s unfavorable responses in the comment section of Sapo, it’s clear that D-VERSE has a tough road ahead.
