Argo Blockchain PLC founders plans NFT investment vehicle IPO

, a non-fungible token-focused firm established by the co-founders of cryptocurrency mining group (), has announced plans to list on the Access segment of the Aquis Stock Exchange Growth Market in London at some time later this month.

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) function effectively as digital, blockchain-based certificates of authenticity for a piece of digital art or other creative work, allowing the owner of the NFT to claim ownership of the original creation even if it has been copied. So far this year, NFTs of Tweets, digital artwork and memes have sold at auction for millions of dollars.

READ: Non-fungible tokens: What are they and why are they the hot new crypto asset?

The company said its plans to raise around £10mln through the placing of 200mln shares at a price of 5p each, adding that its market value at flotation is expected to be around £25mln. The proceeds of the initial public offering will be used to identify potential investments and provide working capital for its initial operations.

“The company considers that there is a sizable potential market for the NFT industry to emerge globally and take market share from the current collectables industry”, the firm said, highlighting that the volume of NFT trade amounts to date is over US$500mln and that the market is expected to grow over the long term.

NFT Investments is aiming to invest in NFTs directly as well as in companies or funds with exposure to NFTs and blockchain technology. It expects its business will be able to “develop substantially” over the next 12 months.

Aside from the involvement of Argo’s co-founders Jonathan Bixby and Mike Edwards, the company’s advisory board also includes Mack Flavelle, the co-founder of Crypto Kitties, considered by many to be the original NFT, as well as Nolan Bushnell, the founder of video game group Atari.

Bixby, who serves as the company’s executive chairman, said in a statement: “I am incredibly excited to be leading the world’s first pure play NFT vehicle to list on a public market”.

“Our team of blockchain and creative experts is truly world-class and we look forward to creating value for our shareholders in this exciting and growing space. We truly believe that NFTs will form the backbone of the digital collectables markets and owning the best individual assets and underlying rights can create immense value for our shareholders”, he added.