The payments company announced it purchased CryptoPunk 7610—a non-fungible token of a pixel-art woman’s head with a mohawk, green eyeshadow and lipstick—in order to learn more about digital assets. (The Logic)

Talking point: The NFT market is roaring hot again and Visa’s purchase has added fuel to the fire, with 90 CryptoPunks worth a total of US$20 million sold in the hour following the announcement. CryptoPunks have become a status symbol in the crypto world, with the cheapest punk listed for US$225,000 as of Monday afternoon. If you don’t get the appeal of shelling out six figures for a pixelated digital portrait, you’re likely to find the fact someone spent US$600,000 on a JPEG of a rock yesterday even more baffling. It might help to think of showing up on social media with a coveted NFT as an avatar as the digital equivalent of owning a Birkin bag.