Ethical Matters:
Intangible Value: The Future of Art & Money

‘Throughout history, people have used all sorts of things as money such as gold, feathers and cowrie shells.’ – Bank of England

If money is an agreed-upon symbol of credit, then could anything be money? Money could be markings on clay tablets, numbers on paper, bees or an online decentralised digital-only currency such as bitcoin or dogecoin?

Collectors of art and other cultural objects have long known that their value comes from what people are willing to pay for them – it is a cultural consensus. Digital art such as NFTS remove the need for galleries and curators in the same way sites like Bandcamp enable music creators to sell directly to their audience.

Is cryptocurrency the consensual, decentralised, government-free future of money or an unregulated swamp lurking with thieves, confidence tricksters and scammers? Could another crypt-crash happen? Will I ever make money from an NFT and can I trust the blockchain to keep my art mine?

Join the discussion with researcher, philosopher, and finance guide Dr Larisa Yarovaya alongside Becks Perfect, founder of Nifty World, a YouTube educational resource for both collectors and creators of NFTs. We shall attempt to fine the reality of cryptocurrency beneath the hype and scaremongering and attempt to answer the questions posed by the future of crypto coin.

Dr Larisa Yarovaya is Associate Professor of Finance, Programme Director of BSc Finance, and Deputy Head of the Centre for Digital Finance at the Southampton Business School, University of Southampton. Larisa is a researcher in International Finance and Financial Technologies (Fintech), with specialism in interconnectedness between financial markets, contagion and spillover effect, diversification, hedging and safe haven properties of new markets, including cryptocurrencies, green, and Islamic assets.

Becks Perfect is the Founder of Nifty World, a YouTube educational resource for both collectors and creators of NFTs to learn about this emerging and growing tech space. Becks has been a broadcaster for over a decade working in tech, film and entertainment. Becks has been a film and tech pundit for Sky News, ITV, BBC Radio 1, Channel 5 News, Weekend on ITV and The Saturday Show. Becks remains a Tech Expert on QVC and the Film, TV and Tech reporter for TalkSPORT with Paul Ross.