What are NFTs?

NFT stands for non-fungible tokens which are cryptographic tokens designed to represent the ownership of digital assets, especially scarce ones. They are essentially unique tokenized representations of digital assets that can include such items as digital collectibles, in-game items, photos, audio and video files that could be exchangeable on public databases or blockchains. Read the full explainer here. NFT marketplaces allow people to buy and sell or trade NFTs. Some of the most popular NFT marketplaces include OpenSea, Rarible, SuperRare, Mintable, RelayX, MoMint, Ghost Marketplace, NFTfi, and NiftyKit. 

According to investment bank Jefferies, the global NFT marketplace is expected to reach around $80 billion by 2025. For those interested in collecting NFTs, how to store them safely is very important. Many people lose their valuable digital assets to hacks or phishing attacks. Seth Green, a popular American actor reportedly lost over $300,000 worth of NFTs that included a Bored Ape, Mutant Apes and a Doodles NFT to a phishing attack. Having reliable storage for your NFTs can go a long way to ensure that your assets are kept safe and out of the reach of hackers. 

What is an NFT Wallet? 

NFT wallets are digital wallets that help support NFT digital asset standards such as ERC-721 and ERC-1155 on the Ethereum network. A good NFT wallet typically comes with a range of features that include great security and usability or wallets that offer multi-platform support and cross-chain compatibility. For example, some wallets allow you to handle an NFT across different blockchain networks e.g. Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain, or Solana. 

Top 5 NFT Wallets 

 Metamask

One of the most popular web3 wallets is MetaMask. Launched initially by ConsenSys as a web browser extension that enables direct connections between users and decentralised applications (DApps), it now also has a mobile version. MetaMask makes it possible for users to create an Ethereum wallet that can be directly connected to all Ethereum-based platforms in order to mint and trade NFTs.

MetaMask supports ETH and any ETH based token standards including ERC20, 721, and others. The wallet comes with a swap feature allowing users to swap between different tokens. It also supports hardware wallets such as Ledger and Trezor on the extension. 

MetaMask comes with automatic token detection which the user simply needs to enable and tokens can also be imported or added manually using token contract addresses. Check out our in-depth guide on how to use MetaMask. 

Trust Wallet

Another popular mobile wallet is Trust Wallet which is owned by the crypto exchange Binance. Trust Wallet is a non-custodial mobile wallet that doesn’t hold users’ private keys. Users can exchange & earn crypto, buy, store, and collect NFTs. The wallet reportedly has over 25 million+ users. 

Trust Wallet makes it possible for users to store and manage the NFTs on the platform and offers users an easy way to keep their unique ERC721 and ERC1155 NFTs or BEP721 and BEP1155 NFTs on BSC and game assets in one place. Users can store different NFTs such as CryptoKitties, Decentraland, or Axies, among many others. 

The wallet provides one-click access to NFT marketplaces such as OpenSea. It also has integrations with public blockchains such as Binance Smart Chain. If you are an Android user, you can use the in-app DApp browser or simply connect to a marketplace using WalletConnect if you’re an iPhone user. From there you can easily buy, sell, and mint NFTs on several popular NFT marketplaces using Trust Wallet.

AlphaWallet

AlphaWallet is another popular NFT wallet. It is a self-custodial wallet that is open-source and only supports native Ethereum blockchain assets. It’s also a mobile-only wallet that supports blockchain games and NFTs. AlphaWallet comes with a simple user interface that makes it beginner-friendly. 

AlphaWallet allows the user access to view all their NFTs on the Ethereum network. Using the Secure Enclave on your mobile devices, the wallet provides the hardware level of security to users. The wallet has a good interface allowing the user to access NFTs in the Wallet section and also make use of NFT-related DApps in the built-in browser. Users have the ability to mint new NFTs, bid in an auction, transfer or sell, control your gas fees and so much more. 

Math Wallet

Described as a multi-chain wallet for Web3, Math Wallet supports over a 100 public chains.It is backed by Binance Labs, Alameda Research, Multicoin Capital and other firms. It offers a web, desktop and mobile version available on Android and Apple devices. 

Math Wallet has a dApp browser built in that makes it possible for users to view NFT marketplaces. It also comes with some additional features that include staking and swapping. Math also has its own utility token $MATH which can be traded on exchanges such as FTX, MEXC and others. 

Enjin Wallet

With Enjin Wallet, users are able to create as many wallets as needed. Users can create a wallet for trading NFTs on the Enjin Marketplace. The marketplace offers all kinds of digital collectibles from rare digital art and branded items, to digital fashion and gaming items that can be used in multiple Web3 worlds. The NFTs users earn in blockchain games and apps can be sold or traded easily using Enjin wallet. 

The wallet also allows users to interact with any DApp or DeFi swap service on Android devices, without leaving the safety of their wallets. Enjin allows users to receive free NFTs via QR code. The wallet also comes with an end-to-end solution for trading NFTs or launching NFT projects. Users can manage multiple wallets, import old wallets and easily track their cold storage devices such as hardware wallets all in one place.

How to Keep Your NFTs Safe

Once you choose the wallet of your liking to store or trade your NFTs, there are some key things you should always keep top of mind to ensure you are keeping your NFTs safe. The most important one is making sure you protect your passphrase or wallet backup phrase. This mnemonic phrase is essentially the secret key to your wallet. Once someone gets hold of it, they can easily access your crypto assets including your NFTs.  You can also enhance your security by using hardware wallets such as KeepKey or Ledger.