Digital Assets in the Emerging Metaverse: An Introduction to Smart Contracts, NFTs, and Virtual Land (2021 Edition)

Decentralized Finance (DeFi) became a $100 billion market in less than three years. And this is only the beginning. Projects that run on blockchain protocols like Ethereum are moving quickly to undercut industries such as finance, insurance, and gaming. These pathways are enabling the growth of a brand-new Internet that gives you the power to control your own data and monetize your digital assets. Digital assets (cryptocurrency tokens, NFTs and virtual land) are the vehicles for this empowerment.

Who am I and why did I write this book? By training, I am an attorney, licensed to practice law in California. My students will tell you that I am more of a college professor. My family will tell you that I am a husband and a father. And my overgrown passion for gardening has led to a writing habit also; I have written a number of published books and e-book guides.

For the last eight years, I also have participated in several important cryptocurrency projects that have pioneered the potential of blockchain technology. Though I am not a technical person, the attorney in me was watching the development of smart contracts and the growth in digital assets. I understood the potential of the blockchain to make the world a better place for a lot of people. In the last few years, I have been watching as a whole new economy and financial culture have emerged from scratch around Bitcoin, Ethereum, and their blockchain progeny.

These changes are coming just as other “futuristic” technologies are nearing maturity also. These include smartglasses for augmented reality (being introduced in the next year or two by Apple, Facebook, Google, Lenovo, and others), virtual reality headsets, 5G data, self-driving cars, the Internet of Things, and artificial intelligence. Any one of these changes could disrupt entire industries; we are about to get served with all of them at around the same time.

Some experts predict that we will see more changes in the next 10 years than we have experienced in the last 100. Through my work with blockchains and smart contracts, I realized that everyone can participate in the growth of this new world. And so I decided to write this short book and share what I have learned about digital assets in this emerging metaverse.

The metaverse is the new virtual and physical meeting space where emerging technologies converge. Most young people are comfortable meeting and interacting online in games and shared social media spaces. The recent pandemic pushed more of us in that direction as well (probably accelerating the virtual trend by a few years). And it’s not just for games. Universities, doctor’s offices, banks, shopping malls, casinos, stadiums with all new fan activities, and many more experiences: very soon, all of them will be available in 3D, virtual spaces.

If this sounds remotely interesting, then please try this book. I will explain everything I have learned about digital assets in the metaverse. After reading this short guide, I hope you will feel more empowered to begin exploring this world if you choose to do so. Soon, there will be much more for each of us to discover and learn.