The NFT space can feel like information overload at times, so we’ve cut through the noise to deliver you a curated dose of what matters most. Your all-in-one weekly companion.
Headline News - Azuki founder in hot water, the crypto market plummets and NFTs are coming to Instagram & FB
The past week has been a bloodbath on several fronts. The crypto market has suffered huge losses, with scandals and fear mongering rife. Most notably, LUNA has lost 99.5% of its value in just 7 days, and the ecosystems “stablecoin” UST (supposedly pegged to the US dollar) traded as low as $0.30. This caused widespread panic. ETH has lost approximately $1,000 USD of value in one week, and floor prices of NFT collections across the board have dropped as people scramble to exit and seek stability in less volatile assets.
The founder of Azuki, known as Zagabond, was forthcoming with his involvement in previous NFT projects this week, including known rug pulls. This led to huge unrest within the community, resulted in a massive sell-off and a considerable drop in the collections floor price. Heated debates began on Twitter surrounding the ethics of investing in a project when you know the founder has acted in what’s perceived as an inappropriate manner, in the past. Zagabond argued that failure is part and parcel of how one gains experience, and is what ultimately enabled him to create a winning formula in Azuki. Not everyone was convinced this was the whole story. He later posted an apologetic tweet which you can read here. For more info, have a read of this article.
Other big news is that Instagram will integrate NFTs into the platform this week. Mark Zuckerberg also commented that Meta plans to “bring similar functionality to Facebook soon” and is working on “augmented reality NFTs” for Instagram as well. For the full article, please click here.
Curated News - the best bits of the past week
BIGGEST NFT Sale: Bored Ape Yacht Club #17 for 410ETH
There’s more to NFTs than just PFPs — 5 ways nonfungible tokens will transform society
Why Avalanche Is the Killer App for NFT Games: Ava Labs President
Sony and Theta Labs Launch 3D NFTs That You Can (Almost) Touch
Steve Aoki Went on a Shopping Spree Despite Bearish Market Trends
ApeCoin is down 70%+ since the Otherside launch — Can Yuga Labs turn the ship around?
The Polygon network will be used to power Meta’s NFT ambitions
Maybe Something - things we’re keeping an eye on
Doodles NFT launch their Dooplicator collection for holders on May 12th. Follow their Twitter for more info
Historical Insight: Created in 2016, PixelMap is considered the second-oldest Ethereum NFT, the first "billboard-style" NFT on Ethereum, and provides the ability to create, display, and immortalize artwork directly on the Blockchain. Plus its dev is still super-active and engaged.
The OthersideMeta Twitter account shared a sneak peak of what’s to come
10KFT launched Battle.town. See here for more details
CyberBrokers Quest #2 goes live this Friday (5/13) at 8:00 AM CDT
Gutter Cat Gangs Dog Clone Vials go live 12th May @ 6pm ET
The List NFT Offers Lifetime Access To The Best Clubs And Festivals
Blvck Paris, Mindblowon and PXN were the most notable sell-out mints of the past week. Click links to visit OpenSea collection pages.
Animoca Brands and Olive X partner in move-to-earn game Dustland Runner
Zeneca DYOR pick: TokenProof Founders Circle. Tokenproof is a way to safely and securely prove ownership of your NFTs without the need to ever connect or carry your wallet again. The Founder's Circle NFT was a free claim for our early supporters and will have benefits and utility from time to time.
Zeneca DYOR pick: Interleave. One of Zeneca’s favourite builders in the space, Loopify, has been teasing a bunch over the last few days that there is something big coming
Talking Point - Market volatility
Volatility is part and parcel of any nascent industry and seasoned veterans within the crypto space will be well aware of its ever-present threat. Those who have been through such times in the past will have established risk-appropriate investment strategies in line with their personal financial situations, averaging in or out to accommodate their needs. That said, these recent moves serve to remind us how quickly the tides can turn and inevitably, people will have been burnt.
It’s evident through recent conversations that it’s those who are newer to the space who are most vulnerable, and this is an uphill struggle that persists in gaining wider audience participation. It’s during market peaks that people proliferate stories of huge gains and life-changing experiences. This encourages fringe players and consumers to edge in, and quite often, they are the ones who suffer the largest losses.
Friends who have been across the space for years are certainly still up. Those who got involved recently are certainly down. The phrase ‘once bitten twice shy’ comes to mind. It’s so very easy to onboard consumers when all candles are green, but it’s ever so hard to retain them if they’ve only experienced the red.
Volatility on this scale does not inspire confidence. Trust takes time to build. To my mind we’re in for a rocky few months, at least.
That said, it’s in times like these that we learn the most, and it’s in time likes these, the best opportunities present themselves. If you’re uncomfortable, you’re over-exposed. Simple as that. That doesn’t solve the issue in the immediate future, but it will certainly ensure future investments are handled differently.
If you’re holding stables, and you’re bullish on a collection, these circumstances present amazing buying opportunities. Bear markets are where the real money is made. Buying low on high conviction, long-term plays is a beautiful thing.
I sincerely hope you are all in good stead, both financially and emotionally. This space can takes its toll on both. If you’re in a bad spot, take time to assess where things went wrong and how to be better prepared from here on out.
The crypto and NFT spaces are here to stay. Those who remain will be exposed to huge upside potential. Take a break if need be, but don’t bail out on what’s one of the most exciting industries on the planet.
Tip Of The Week - Genie integrates Upshot appraisal tool to determine fair valuation of NFTs
With so many metrics to consider, it can sometimes be a tricky task determining whether you’re paying too much or too little for any given NFT.
We all want the best entry prices possible and nobody wants to be paying over the odds. But to determine true market value can be time consuming. Now we have a helping hand. Earlier today Genie tweeted the following:
The Genie platform has integrated an NFT appraisal tool into their platform, powered by Upshot, currently in affect for over 300 collections. At a glance, this enables users to get an understanding of whether an NFT is overpriced or undervalued.
Try is out for yourself at Genie.xyz and see if it suits your needs. I’d say it shouldn’t be considered 100% accurate for every users requirements and you’ll still need to use your own judgement, but it certainly makes for a great starting point.
ZenAcademy and 333 Club Noticeboard
Regular Event Reminders
Join our poker nights via our Discord. Events held every weekend, with prizes to be won.
Weekly Movie Nights are going strong. Check our Discord for info on this weeks get together.
Reminder: As a ZenAcademy member, you get exclusive access to market health statistics and analysis updated every 12hrs. For a full rundown of how to get the most out of these charts, click here.
Irregular Events and Info
ZenAcademy partners with The Lost Glitches, bringing with it some exclusive benefits for the community.
The 333 Club now has an Official Twitter account. Please check it out and ‘follow’. Thanks for your support.
We are planning an event for NFT NYC. If you are interested in attending, please join fill out this form so we can start getting organized.
We’re also planning an IRL meetup at MET Amsterdam which is taking place from the 14th-17th June. Join the chat here for more info.
Nothing in this or any other ZenCaps publication should be construed as financial or investment advice. The views and opinions expressed in ZenCaps publications do not reflect those of Zeneca_33 or the ZenAcademy.
Always exercise caution within the NFT space and adhere to best practices when it comes to making any investments. There is plenty of potential, but this comes with inherent risks.
Stay safe, and as always, good luck.
Amazing summary 👏