86 - OpenSea & The Business of NFTs | Devin Finzer

Oct 4, 2021

Devin Finzer, the founder and CEO of OpenSea, dives into the NFT boom and OpenSea's pivotal role. He discusses how the excitement around NFTs originates from the crypto community, emphasizing the importance of building with an open mind. The conversation touches on challenges like scaling and gas fees, as well as the ongoing issues of centralization versus decentralization. Devin also shares insights on OpenSea's recent front-running scandal and the future of NFTs in the metaverse, indicating that there's much more on the horizon.

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INSIGHT

Crypto-Native NFT Boom

The NFT boom was driven by crypto-native culture, not external industries.
This organic growth from within the crypto community fueled adoption.

ANECDOTE

OpenSea's Pivot

Devin Finzer's initial Y Combinator project was not OpenSea, but a bandwidth-sharing platform.
He pivoted to OpenSea after witnessing the CryptoKitties phenomenon and the potential of NFTs.

INSIGHT

NFT Market Growth Potential

Devin Finzer believes the NFT market has significant room to grow beyond its current state.
He points to OpenSea's large volume despite primarily serving the crypto community.

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Devin Finzer, founder & CEO of OpenSea, returns to Bankless to discuss the NFT boom and the role of OpenSea at the center of it all. From Devin's perspective, the energy surrounding NFTs right now is crypto native. This means that this boom starts at the center of crypto culture and extends outwards from there.

We also discuss scaling and gas fees, the spectrum of centralization, the metaverse, and the OpenSea's recent front-running scandal. Building with an open mind and conviction is a key reason why OpenSea finds itself at the center of the NFT markets today, and it looks like we may just be getting started.

✨EXCLUSIVE EPISODE DEBRIEF✨ https://shows.banklesshq.com/p/exclusive-debrief-opensea-and-the

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------ Topics Covered:

0:00 Intro 4:00 Devin Finzer 6:05 The Crypto Native NFT Boom 9:15 Building With an Open Mind 11:36 OpenSea at the Center 18:06 Scaling Under Pressure 22:24 Gas Fees 25:01 Social Media & Users 32:00 Before OpenSea & The Bear 39:50 When NFTs Heated Up 41:45 The Front Running Scandal 48:21 The Centralization Spectrum 55:31 What’s the Metaverse? 58:24 Rapid Fire Questions 1:01:43 Closing & Disclaimers

------ Resources:

Devin on Twitter: https://twitter.com/dfinzer?s=20 OpenSea: https://opensea.io/ NFT Bull Market Episode: https://youtu.be/cmLJHlNlH1s

----- Not financial or tax advice. This channel is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This video is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.

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