When documents and products are susceptible to fraud, trust is the most valuable factor. The VIDT Datalink blockchain powered validation service is designed to protect digital data from fraud and manipulation. But it doesn‘t stop there, even physical objects, such as a Rembrandt work of art, are now secured on the blockchain. The team behind VIDT is taking it a step further by issuing NFTs (non-fungible tokens) that serve as “proof of legal ownership”.

VIDT has decided to kick off this NFT use case in a spectacular way, with a striking example: a 1956 Rolex Milgauss is the first watch whose authenticity and provenance have been recorded on the blockchain. This has been made possible by a collaboration with Jasper Lijfering‘s Amsterdam Vintage Watches. Let's take a look at the process.

Step 1

The authenticity of the watch is checked and confirmed by the experts of Amsterdam Vintage Watches.

Step 2

AVW issues the certificate of authenticity for this watch, including detailed descriptions and macro photos of the watch's unique features, which are impossible to replicate. This certificate is in PDF format, so it can be freely copied and shared, and all the while every copy can be verified by anyone in 5 seconds with just an internet connection via the V-ID platform.

Step 3

The digital certificate is linked to an NFT by storing the digital fingerprint of the certificate in this tradable token. As with this watch, for every other verified product there is one specific NFT and it is stored in the digital wallet of the owner of the product, in this case in the wallet of the owner of the watch.

Proof of Legitimate Ownership

As with the certificate of authenticity, the NFT is delivered and stored together with the watch. The similarity between a receipt, an invoice and an NFT is; all three are proof of legitimate ownership. However, the added value that an NFT provides is that it is not vulnerable to manipulation, unlike its paper predecessors.

Proof of provenance

With every transaction of the watch, its unique NFT will also change hands. This transfer and all future transfers are recorded on the Binance smart chain, building an immutable digital proof of provenance. This only adds to the trust that is needed for such an authentic product.

More about NFTs

NFT is short for non-fungible token. A non-fungible token is a token that represents something unique and is therefore not replaceable. For example, if you send 1 BTC to someone and then receive 1 BTC from the same person, you will not know if this is exactly the same Bitcoin. With non-fungible tokens this is a different story, an NFT represents 1 unique asset, of which you can find out exactly which asset. This makes it possible to store and secure the proof of authenticity of a product, because it is stored in such an NFT.

V-ID has created the VIDCT NFT for this. The C stands for “claim”, since the NFT represents a (partial) ownership of something.

Other VIDT NFT use cases

V-ID does not intend to use NFTs only for luxury goods. The Rembrandt on Chain project has already been completed and so even a Rembrandt has been secured. This, of course, is a unique project, but V-ID also envisions two other use cases outside of luxury goods: company stocks and social privileges.

These two use cases are not yet applicable and so it is not yet possible to evaluate them, but it does sound promising. However, it already seems that V-ID will become the first company to receive legal permission to issue NFTs for company stocks.