Bpost will launch a crypto stamp based on NFT technology this fall. Like most other NFT projects, this initiative has no intrinsic value.

Bpost is launching a crypto stamp this fall. This is a product that consists of a regular stamp linked to a digital image of that stamp. You can use the regular stamp like any other stamp to send letters, the digital version is stored as an NFT on a blockchain. Similar to most other NFT projects, you can’t do anything with this NFT stamp.

NF-what and why?

The whole project is surprising. First of all, the NFT hype was two years ago. Just a reminder for everyone who hears thunder in Cologne: an NFT or Non-fungible token is a unique digital token whose ownership is tracked via the blockchain. NFTs are linked to digital items. In the heyday of the hype, for example, these were pictures of monkeys. According to NFT, it is anyone who owns the NFT of a picture (of a monkey or a stamp or something else)Believers Its owner.

However, an NFT has no legal value whatsoever and therefore represents less than a regular email transferring ownership. Furthermore, the NFT is only virtually linked to the actual image. The print itself is simply a digital JPEG or PNG that you can copy as you wish. If you do that, the owner of the print’s NFT will look very angry. We’ve written extensively about NFTs, how they work, and why they’re silly in 2022. Check out this article for more information.

Meanwhile, the NFT hype has died down. Those who paid a lot for illegal digital ownership stamps of monkey prints have been seeking refuge in a lawsuit since late 2023. Salesforce also tried to do something with NFTs, but in practice the whole idea died a quiet death.

For the collectors

That’s where Bpost comes in, launching its crypto stamp after another year’s delay. The crypto stamp, like the monkey paintings, is only valuable to those who believe it is valuable. Bpost is aimed at collectors with digital ambitions. They can collect and trade the NFTs of their digital stamps.

Again, only the NFT is unique and is on the blockchain. The associated image itself is an ordinary image file that you can copy billions of times in identical quality if necessary. The crypto stamp is certainly not linked to the real stamp and therefore does not contribute in any way to making your shipment more secure or more trackable.

Bpost is working with PostNL, the Austrian Post and POST Luxembourg for its stamp. We can discover what the Belgian stamp will look like both digitally and physically in September. Bpost will then also explain to you in the eShop how you can donate your money for it. Purchases will be possible from October 21st.

Innovative according to Bpost

Chris Peeters, CEO of Bpost, describes this new way of buying, collecting and exchanging stamps as secure and innovative. These are two terms that we would not associate with the crypto solution given the history of NFTs. Just two years ago, this stamp would have been a fascinating gimmick. Today, after an already disappointing Easter, it reads like figs.

The other three postal companies have also launched a crypto stamp in 2023. The image above is an example of this. You can view the image as many times as you like, even if you don’t have an NFT of it.