Even Presidents are Getting NFTs

First it was the art auction houses, then professional sports leagues, followed by media stalwarts such as the Associated Press. Now the president of Israel is the latest denizen of the mainstream world to embrace that most exotic creation of the crypto space — the NFT.

Or more precisely, to be awarded one. On Wednesday, Isaac Herzog, the newly sworn president of the Middle East nation, was given a tokenized version of the oath taken by his late father, Chaim Herzog, when he became president in 1983. It is believed this marks the first time a nation’s legislature has utilized NFT technology in an official capacity to commemorate a historic event.

Special Memory

The Knesset, Israel’s Parliament, bestowed the honor on Isaac Herzog using a cold storage drive containing a tokenized version of the 38-year-old document. Knesset Speaker Michael Levy said it commemorated a “special memory,” according to local news reports.

The move is in character for a nation that has nurtured a vibrant startup scene, with world-beating fintech and cybersecurity ventures. In 2020, four Israeli lawmakers proposed a bill to exempt Bitcoin from capital gain taxes.

Still, the Israel Securities Authority (ISA) deems cryptocurrency tokens issued by companies to be securities instead of assets. Therefore, cryptocurrency tokens in Israel are still subject to Israeli securities regulations.