.png){kind=logo}
Do not invest unless you are prepared to lose all the money you invest. Cryptoassets are high-risk investments, and you should not expect to be protected if something goes wrong. Take two minutes to learn more. Additionally, capital gains tax may apply to profits from cryptocurrency sales.
Contents:
You can buy NFTs in the UK from an NFT marketplace such as OpenSea, NBA Top Shot or Valuables by Cents. To buy NFTs, you need a compatible crypto wallet and some cryptocurrencies.
In this guide, we’ll show you how to buy NFTs using the Ethereum cryptocurrency, Ether (ETH), which is by far the most popular way to buy NFTs in the world.
To buy NFTs with Ethereum, you need the following:
To buy Ether in the UK, you need to sign up to a crypto exchange such as eToro or Coinbase, where you can buy Ether with your GBP debit card or via bank transfer.
Once you’ve bought Ether, you then need to transfer it to an Ethereum-compatible crypto wallet such as Coinbase Wallet, eToro Money Wallet, or MetaMask, depending on what NFT marketplace you want to purchase NFTs from. The wallets are separate from the exchanges, so having money in an exchange doesn’t mean that you have money in a wallet. A crypto wallet is a place where you can store, send or receive cryptocurrencies, including NFTs.
Once you’ve funded your wallet, you can proceed to buy NFTs directly from any NFT marketplace that connects to your wallet.
Below, you’ll find information on how to buy NFTs via eToro, Coinbase and Gemini. You can also scroll down to discover some of the best NFT marketplaces from around the world.
eToro is a multi-asset platform that offers both investing in stocks and crypto assets, as well as trading CFDs. With eToro, you have over 70 cryptocurrencies to choose from, including popular coins like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Tether, XRP, Binance Coin (BNB) and Solana. It is entirely free to open an account with eToro, and all registered users receive a US$100,000 demo account for free, which you can use to practice buying crypto and other assets before committing to them. eToro does not charge a deposit fee but charges a 1% trading fee on all crypto positions. Trading on eToro occurs in USD, so a conversion fee will apply if you deposit or withdraw in a currency other than USD. Withdrawals incur a fee of US$5 (£4), and the minimum withdrawal amount is US$30 (£24).
Complete the following steps to buy NFTs via eToro:
1. Create an account with eToro Exchange
2. Buy some Ethereum
3. Download eToro Money Wallet and create an account
4. Download MetaMask Wallet and create an account
5. Transfer your Ethereum from the eToro Exchange to the eToro Money Wallet (the minimum ETH you can transfer from the eToro Exchange to the eToro Money Wallet is 0.11 ETH, which is roughly about £342 (at the time of writing))
6. Transfer your Ethereum from the eToro Money Wallet to the MetaMask Wallet
7. Visit your desired NFT Marketplace (e.g. OpenSea, more below)
8. Connect your MetaMask Wallet to the NFT Marketplace
9. Buy some NFTs
Fees apply when you buy NFTs on any marketplace. In most cases, you have to pay the applicable price of the NFT, network (gas) fees and platform fees. You should see all the applicable fees before you pay.
Please note: Do not invest unless you are prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment, and you should not expect to be protected if something goes wrong. Take two minutes to learn more. Cryptoassets are not regulated by the FCA and are not subject to protection under the FSCS or within the scope of jurisdiction of the Financial Ombudsman Service. Capital gains tax may apply to profits from cryptocurrency sales.
Coinbase is a cryptocurrency exchange that allows you to buy, sell and earn popular digital currencies and keep track of them in one place. With Coinbase, you have over 240 cryptocurrencies and other digital assets to choose from, including popular coins and tokens like Bitcoin, Ethereum, USD Coin, Tether, Dogecoin and Cardano. You can set up recurring trades and invest in cryptocurrency slowly over time by scheduling buys daily, weekly, or monthly. You can also track your trades and monitor market movements via the web app or iOS and Android mobile apps. The Coinbase Wallet allows you to store all your crypto and NFTs in one place, trade 500+ assets on DEXes and earn interest.
Complete the following steps to buy NFTs via Coinbase:
1. Create an account with Coinbase Exchange
2. Buy some Ethereum
3. Download Coinbase Wallet and create an account
4. Transfer your Ethereum from Coinbase Exchange to the Wallet
5. Visit your desired NFT Marketplace (e.g. OpenSea, more below)
6. Connect your Wallet to the NFT Marketplace
7. Buy some NFTs
Fees apply when you buy NFTs on any marketplace. In most cases, you have to pay the applicable price of the NFT, network (gas) fees and platform fees. You should see all the applicable fees before you pay.
Please note: Do not invest unless you are prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment, and you should not expect to be protected if something goes wrong. Take two minutes to learn more. Cryptoassets are not regulated by the FCA and are not subject to protection under the FSCS or within the scope of jurisdiction of the Financial Ombudsman Service. Capital gains tax may apply to profits from cryptocurrency sales.
Gemini, founded by Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, is an easy-to-use cryptocurrency exchange suitable for both beginners and advanced crypto traders. Gemini makes it simple to research the crypto market, buy NFTs, Bitcoin, Ethereum and 100+ digital currencies, and build a portfolio of cryptocurrencies and tokens. With Gemini, you can trade assets, manage your holdings, and set recurring trades and dynamic price alerts. You can also track your trades and monitor market movements via the web app or iOS and Android mobile apps. UK customers can access the Gemini Exchange, which offers various beginner-friendly and advanced crypto trading tools. Gemini allows users to choose a default currency from GBP, USD, AUD, CAD, EUR, HKD and SGD. UK customers can also access the Gemini wallet, which lets you store all your assets in an insured hot wallet or institutional-grade cold storage system.
Complete the following steps to buy NFTs via Gemini:
1. Create an account with Gemini Exchange
2. Buy some Ethereum
3. Download MetaMask Wallet and create an account
4. Transfer your Ethereum from Gemini Exchange to MetaMask Wallet
5. Visit your desired NFT Marketplace (e.g. OpenSea, more below)
6. Connect your MetaMask Wallet to the NFT Marketplace
7. Buy some NFTs
Fees apply when you buy NFTs on any marketplace. In most cases, you have to pay the applicable price of the NFT, network (gas) fees and platform fees. You should see all the applicable fees before you pay.
Please note: Do not invest unless you are prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment, and you should not expect to be protected if something goes wrong. Take two minutes to learn more. Cryptoassets are not regulated by the FCA and are not subject to protection under the FSCS or within the scope of jurisdiction of the Financial Ombudsman Service. Capital gains tax may apply to profits from cryptocurrency sales.
We’ve compiled a list of some of the best NFT marketplaces in the UK and around the world. These are places where you can buy and sell NFTs from anywhere in the world, provided you have an Ethereum-compatible wallet, some Ethereum and an internet connection.
Compare some of the best NFT marketplaces below. Please keep in mind that cryptoassets are highly volatile, unregulated investment products with no UK or EU investor protection. You could lose all the money you put into them.
A few other popular NFT marketplaces include Rarible, Mintable, Decentraland, Sotheby’s, and Christie’s.
An NFT is a certificate of ownership of a digital artefact. Essentially, NFTs allow you to buy and sell unique digital items and keep track of who owns them using the blockchain.
NFT, which stands for “non-fungible token”, allows you to prove your ownership of any digital asset, including art, images, videos, trading cards, domain names, and so much more.
The NFT is not simply the JPEG or video clip you buy on the marketplace but a token that shows your proof of ownership of that JPEG or video. Here’s an example of an NFT we created on OpenSea. This NFT is a simple image from our popular Best Crypto Exchanges article.
We’ve put it out on OpenSea and are asking people to make an offer for the sole right to the image. If someone makes an offer and we accept it, they get a token that confirms that they are the true owner of the piece. That token is the NFT. Additionally, they can track the NFT’s history to see who the previous owner was and how much the piece was sold for. If it were sold by auction, they would also be able to see the winning bid and all other bids placed on the piece.
That’s how NFTs work in a nutshell. It’s pretty simple. Think of it as giving internet creators and anyone, really, the opportunity to prove the ownership of their online creations and sell them whenever they want.
There are many things you can do with NFTs. For instance, we just bought an Ethereum domain name, koody.eth, which is quite similar to koody.co. While koody.co allows you to find and read this and other articles we write on the web, koody.eth allows you to send us Ethereum without having to access our traditional Ethereum address, which is a long string of numbers, texts and symbols. koody.eth is also really cool and easy to remember. You can view our koody.eth domain name NFT on OpenSea and get your own Ethereum domain name on the Ethereum Name Service.
Non-fungible means that each NFT is unique. Consider the following example: Suppose you have 1 GBP, 1 USD and 1 BTC, and your mate has 1 GBP, 1 USD and 1 BTC. Your 1 GBP, 1 USD and 1 BTC are equal and the same as your mate’s because 1 GBP is always 1 GBP in the same way that 1 BTC is 1 BTC.
NFTs are different. Each NFT is unique - remember that the NFT is not the JPEG or video clip you bought on OpenSea but a token that shows your proof of ownership of that JPEG or video. As long as this holds true, then it would be silly for any two NFTs to be the same as this would mean that two people can lay claim to one item. Imagine if we said we owned the Mona Lisa, and you said you did, too. Well… that could get a little awkward.
Each NFT is registered on the blockchain, and the record is irreversible.
NFTs are important because they give content creators (and anyone else on the internet) a unique ability to monetise their work without relying on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Spotify, Apple, Google, etc.
They are also quite powerful because they allow anyone on the internet to verify the authenticity of any digital artefact. Apart from being able to purchase literally anything on the internet, you can also verify its authenticity.
NFTs can also be re-sold, which means that one can buy them as a speculative investment. If you think the price of a digital asset will go up in the future (for whatever reason), buying it as an NFT now means you can sell it at a higher price in the future.
NFT marketplaces also make it possible for the original creator of an asset to specify if they would like to earn a percentage of the sale value each time an item they created is re-sold. This is quite powerful because it means that if you sold your digital creation today, you could keep earning revenues from it until the end of time.
Finally, NFTs are an excellent way to support the artists and creators you love and a really neat way to show your friends how seriously cool you are.
Here are some noteworthy facts about NFTs at the moment:
NFT minting is the act of registering your digital creation on the blockchain. Once you register your creation on the blockchain, usually via an NFT marketplace like OpenSea or Valuables by Cents, you are supplied with a unique (or non-fungible) token that you can use to prove the authenticity and ownership of your creation. This token is your NFT, and you can view it on the NFT marketplace or in an Ethereum-compatible crypto wallet of your choice. Here’s an example of a tweet we minted on Valuables by Cents.
The most expensive NFT ever sold is Beeple’s “The First 5000 Days”, which sold for a staggering US$69,346,250 on Christie’s.
You use an NFT to prove the authenticity and ownership of any digital creation. You can also use it to track and trace the history of ownership of any online asset previously registered on the blockchain. We go into more detail about why NFTs are important above.
There are many reasons why one would buy an NFT, including bragging rights and “just because”. However, most people buy NFTs to support creators and artists or as part of an embedded feature within a blockchain-based video game. People also buy NFTs as speculative investments - they hope that the NFTs will become more valuable in the future and they can sell them for sizeable profits.
As with all investments, it is entirely up to you to decide if they are worthwhile. Most people buy NFTs to support creators they love or as a part of embedded features within blockchain-based video games. If any of those NFTs turn out to be valuable in the future, then the creators or owners could make a profit. Some people have recorded huge success selling memes as NFTs. Consider the “Nyan Cat” and the “deal with it” glasses NFTs. These types of NFTs have become valuable due to their already existing popularity on the internet. Always remember that when it comes to investing, profits are not guaranteed, and your capital is at risk.
Here are the best apps for buying cryptocurrencies in the UK:
Every month, we’ll send you The Plug - a curation of the best personal finance content in the UK. We share real-life stories, how-to guides, top personal finance news, popular community questions, and tips to help you stay on top of your money.
.png){kind=small}
