CryptoPunks

• Yuga Labs, the leading web3 lifestyle and media company and creators of the Bored Ape Yacht Club, Otherside, TwelveFold, and owners of Meebits, CryptoPunks, and 10KTF has acquired PROOF, which includes the PROOF Collective, Moonbirds, Oddities, Mythics, and Grails exhibition series.
• View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240216290652/en/
  Yuga Labs Acquires PROOF Collective.
• “As a company committed to championing art, culture, and community on the blockchain, we’re excited to have PROOF join the Yuga ecosystem,” said Daniel Alegre, CEO of Yuga Labs.
• In addition to the PROOF team that will move over to positions at Yuga, Josh Ong, Jesse Bryan, and Amanda Gadbow will oversee the transition of the Moonbirds collection and other key elements into the Yuga ecosystem.

• With this acquisition, Curios will gain access to Rocki's impressive technological infrastructure, and a treasure trove of musicians and creators.
• With this acquisition, Curios will gain access to Rocki's impressive technological infrastructure, and a treasure trove of musicians and creators.
• Curios CEO, Grant Powell shared his thoughts on the acquisition: "We are thrilled to welcome Rocki into the Curios family.
• This merger marks a significant step towards Curios' goal of building an innovative digital content ecosystem that empowers creators and fans alike.

• Part interactive peek into the world of BAYC, and part forum of industry leaders across web3, Yacht Club Open House is BAYC's first limited ticket event for non-members.
• The Open House is part of Yuga Labs' ongoing goal to be the entry point for the next wave of web3 users.
• The event will take place directly after Yuga Labs' highly anticipated ApeFest 2023 , a two-day event focused on city exploration exclusively for the Bored and Mutant Ape community.
• Speakers at the Open House include Illa DaProducer, 12x platinum Grammy nominated music producer; Yat Siu, Executive Chairman and Co-Founder of Animoca Brands; Eric Reid, Yuga Labs General Manager, Otherside; Michael Figge, Yuga Labs Chief Creative Officer; and more.

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are in dire straits. With the market in a severe downturn, it’s safe to assume the NFT bubble has well and truly burst. It was never clear why these digital collectables traded for such large amounts of money. Now they mostly do not. What’s behind their turn of fate? And is there any hope for their future?

What are NFTs?

• “Non-fungible” means unique, as opposed to a “fungible” item such as a five-dollar bill, which is the same as every other five-dollar bill.
• Digital assets are easily copied, so an NFT is essentially a receipt showing you have paid for something that other people can get for free.
• Both sets consist of 10,000 similar-looking but unique figures, distinguished by differing hairstyles, hats, skin colours and so forth.

Why did people buy NFTs?

• Even the venerable auction house Sotheby’s, founded in 1744, jumped on the NFT bandwagon.
• Sotheby’s sold 101 Bored Ape NFTs for more than US$20 million in September 2021.
• As with Bitcoin and similar speculative tokens, the primary driver for buying NFTs was greed.
• Then came the Beanie Baby and dotcom booms of the late 1990s – and more recently, meme stocks and Terra-Luna cryptocurrency.

The NFT crash

• Prices in the NFT market have also seen huge falls.
• One high-profile example is an NFT of the first tweet by then-Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey.
• Crypto entrepreneur Sina Estavi bought this NFT for US$2.9 million in March 2021.
• What drove the NFT collapse?
• Last year, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced, when he was chancellor of the exchequer (their equivalent of treasurer), the Royal Mint would produce an NFT.

Gone for good?

• Some subjects of past bubbles are still around.
• Poseidon shares, which ran up from 80 cents in September 1969 to $280 in February 1970, are still listed (and currently trading for 2 cents).
• They will probably join the Dutch tulips and dotcoms in the history of speculative follies.