Bored Ape Yacht Club
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Opening Investigation Into Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT Creators: Report
Federal regulators are reportedly investigating the creator of the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) non-fungible token (NFT) collection for potential violations of federal laws during the sale of digital assets. Citing an unnamed source familiar with the matter, Bloomberg reports that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is investigating Yuga Labs to determine if […]
The post U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Opening Investigation Into Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT Creators: Report appeared first on The Daily Hodl.
Bored Ape creators and other NFT projects investigated by SEC probe
A source familiar with the matter said the SEC is looking into whether certain NFTs from Yuga Labs could be “more akin to stocks.”
Sources say that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) probe into Yuga Labs is actually part of a wider investigation into the nonfungible token (NFT) market, which already came to light in March.
On Oct. 11, a report from Bloomberg citing a source “familiar with the matter” said the SEC is investigating Yuga Labs over whether certain NFTs are “more akin to stocks” and whether the sales of certain digital assets violate federal laws.
However, Cointelegraph understands that the investigation is part of the ongoing SEC probe into the wider NFT market, which is looking at whether certain NFTs and fractional NFTs could fall under federal securities laws.
In March, anonymous sources told Bloomberg the SEC was investigating NFT creators and marketplaces whether “certain nonfungible tokens […] are being utilized to raise money like traditional securities.”
Cointelegraph has contacted the SEC for comment but has not received an immediate response.
Meanwhile, Yuga Labs appears to be looking at the bright side of things. In a statement to Cointelegraph it said:
“It’s well-known that policymakers and regulators have sought to learn more about the novel world of Web3,” said a Yuga Labs spokesperson.
“We hope to partner with the rest of the industry and regulators to define and shape the burgeoning ecosystem. As a leader in the space, Yuga is committed to fully cooperating with any inquiries along the way.”
Bloomberg also reported the regulator is examining the distribution of ApeCoin, which was given to the holders of Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) and other NFTs.
Related: Anon news group makes numerous allegations against Yuga Labs and Bored Ape Yacht Club
According to the ApeCoin website, Yuga Labs is a community member in the ApeCoin DAO and will adopt APE as the primary token across its new projects.
30-Day NFT Sales Are 88% Lower Than They Were 8 Months Ago, Google Searches Nosedived
At the end of January 2022, non-fungible token (NFT) sales raked in $4.77 billion and NFT sales have slipped month after month since then. Last month, $549.82 million in NFT sales took place in September which shows monthly NFT sales are more than 88% lower than they were in January. Furthermore, after the search term […]Nifty News: Yuga Labs launches BAYC council, Animoca backs Cool Cats and more…
Solana NFT volume surged to $130 million in September and Gary Vaynerchuck’s VeeFriends are set to be released as collectibles at Macy’s and Toys “R” Us.
Yuga Labs has announced a new Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) community council to help the project “grow and thrive.”
The team revealed seven council members in an Oct. 5 blog post, noting that they are all OGs who have been around since the early days of the BAYC.
Yuga Labs said it assembled a new community council made up of “Apes with a proven track record of proactively and positively contributing to the club since the start.”
The members include, @beijingdou, @SeraStargirl, @TheMiamiApe, @OxEthanDG, @OxWave, @negithenagi, @peterjfang.
“This council was formed with the intention of representing the club at large and providing an avenue for new perspectives,” Yuga Labs wrote.
Yuga Labs stated that they will engage with the community and gather feedback for the firm, work with Yuga on community-driven initiatives such as commercial projects, meetups and charity work.
“Every Ape in our community has directly impacted our decisions-making from day one. This council, and future councils to come, puts a more formal, efficient and consistent process in place for Yuga leadership to get community feedback and advice on an ongoing basis," it wrote.
Yuga Labs also teased that it could soon launch community councils for its other NFT projects including CryptoPunks, Meebits and the Otherside moving forward.
Today, Yuga Labs welcomes the first BAYC community council that will assist us in shaping the future of the Bored Ape Yacht Club. For more details on the council head over to our official blog at https://t.co/MSD3M1QkfE
— Yuga Labs (@yugalabs) October 5, 2022
Animoca Brands partners with Cool Cats
NFT venture fund giant Animoca Brands has made a strategic investment into blue chip NFT project Cool Cats to help the project expand into new avenues such as gaming.
The Oct. 5 announcement from the duo states that the “partnership will drive Cool Cats' mission to become the largest global NFT brand and a robust media and content company, including through expansion of its gaming offerings.”
Cool Cats was launched in July 2021 and consists of 9,999 cartoon cat avatars. The project has generated $369.2 million worth of NFT sales volume to date as per CryptoSlam data. The latest announcement has also coincided with Cool Cats sales volume pumping 220% over the past 24 hours.
The move also follows a partnership with Animoca Subsidiary GAMEE from Sept. 1, a virtual platform focused on connecting creators, brands and players in the GameFi space.
1/ .@animocabrands is excited to announce our partnership with @coolcatsnft one of the earliest, important and cutest #NFT metaverse first collections out there, to celebrate I picked up a few #CoolCats including this rare beauty #CoolCatsNFT #7807 a little pic.twitter.com/oYzRYHU4XC
— Yat Siu (@ysiu) October 5, 2022
Solana NFT sales volume surges past $100M in September
NFT sales volume on the Solana blockchain tagged $130.1 million in September, with that figure marking an 82.2% increase compared to the $71.4 million posted in August.
While the figure still places Solana well behind Ethereum, which hosted $354.3 million worth of NFT sales volume last month, the difference between the two’s number of unique buyers is much smaller.
According to CryptoSlam data, Solana NFTs saw 143,997 unique buyers in September (up from 95,516 in August) compared to Ethereum’s 166,168 that month (down from 202,467).
While the figures may indicate that Solana is making up some notable ground on Ethereum, the latter still hosts the majority of blue chip NFT projects.
Looking at data over the past 30 days, only one Solana NFT project makes the top 10 in terms of sales volume with tenth ranked y00ts mint t00b’s $13.3 million worth of sale volume. In comparison, eight Ethereum-based projects make the top 10 during that time frame.
Mommy, I want that NFT!
Gary Vaynerchuck’s NFT project VeeFriends has penned an exclusive deal with Macy’s and Toys “R” Us to sell physical plush and figure collectibles featuring VeeFriends NFT characters.
The collectibles will be available in stores from Oct. 17th, and will be priced from $9.99 to $29.99. The characters include Common Sense Cow, Willful Wizard, Practical Peacock, Gratitude Gorilla, Genuine Giraffe and Be The Bigger Person.
Related: Three Arrows Capital's NFT collection to be liquidated
Hodlers who own the NFT version of the characters will receive the associated physical collectibles, with the more expensive plush and six inch figures going to season one NFT holders.
Notably, the hodler’s won’t get a kick-back from the sales of the physical toys however.
Other Nifty News:
Horizon Blockchain Games, the developers of popular NFT card game Skyweaver have raised $40 million in Series A funding, the company disclosed on Oct. 4. The round was led by Brevan Howard Digital and Morgan Creek Digital, with additional participation from Polygon, Take-Two Interactive, and Ubisoft to name a few.
NFT marketplace OpenSea announced in a series of tweets on Oct. 5 that the platform will officially allow its users to bulk list and bulk purchase up to 30 digital collectible items in a single flow.
Yuga Labs Launches Bored Ape and Mutant Ape Yacht Club Community Council
The non-fungible token (NFT) and blockchain firm Yuga Labs has announced a community council will be representatives of the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) and Mutant Ape Yacht Club (MAYC) NFT collections. Yuga Labs has chosen seven community members with “a proven track record” to represent the NFT club at large. Yuga Labs Names Seven […]Chainlink and CF Benchmarks to Bolster Onchain Transparency via CF Bitcoin Interest Rate Curve Product
On Wednesday, the decentralized oracle network platform, Chainlink, announced the launch of a market-wide interest rate product for Web3 protocols and the decentralized finance (defi) economy, called the CF Bitcoin Interest Rate Curve (CF BIRC). Chainlink revealed the new product at Smartcon 2022 in New York City, and the newly launched CF BIRC product aims […]This Week’s NFT Sales Slide, Bored Ape Market Cap Drops 21%, Floor Prices Sink Lower
Non-fungible token (NFT) sales this week dropped 10.88% lower than the week prior. Roughly $118.02 million worth of NFTs were sold this week compared to last week’s $132.43 million. Further, the top two NFT collections with the largest market capitalizations shed significant value during the past seven days. While Bored Ape Yacht Club’s market valuation […]The Sandbox’s Instagram account compromised, hackers try to rent BAYC NFTs
Hackers redirected The Sandbox followers to a fake raffle giveaway URL and even tried to rent Bored Ape NFTs from Instagram users.
Metaverse platform The Sandbox saw its Instagram profile hacked and used to try and rent out Bored Ape Yacht Club nonfungible tokens (NFTs) from a number of users on the social media platform.
The voxel-powered NFT platform’s profile was compromised by hackers on Thursday, promoting a fabricated raffle ticket event that touted a season 4 LAND giveaway to unsuspecting users.
The firm indicated that its two-factor authentication and other security measures had been bypassed to promote the fake giveaway. The profile’s website URL was changed, with one user claiming to have lost NFTs after clicking the fake link.
Cointelegraph managed to follow the link to the fake website — which prompts users to connect web-based wallets for a chance to win the fraudulent raffle.
In a bizarre twist, Sandbox co-founder and chief operating officer Sebastien Borget revealed that the hackers then reached out to a number of users on Instagram with Bored Ape Yacht Club profile pictures in an attempt to "rent" out the NFTs — offering 40 Ether (ETH) to use the BAYC NFTs for 24 hours.
Instagram account recovered. The hacker tried to rent Bored Apes Yacht Club NFTs - using our account. We would NEVER ask via DM and have contacted all users to notify them. https://t.co/1DRFR3JlIq pic.twitter.com/CKQWfVBTNF
— Sebastien (@borgetsebastien) September 8, 2022
According to Borget, The Sandbox managed to recover control of its Instagram account a few hours later, while stories promoting the fake giveaway were still live on the account at the time of publishing (:00 pm EST).
The NFT-powered Metaverse platform has collaborated with major brands and celebrities since its Alpha launch in November 2021. The likes of Paris Hilton and Snoop Dogg have partnered with the platform, while notable clothing retailers like Adidas launched NFTs wearables that are compatible with The Sandbox and other Metaverse platforms.
Cointelegraph has reached out to The Sandbox to confirm details of the incident and will update this article accordingly.
This Week’s NFT Sales Jump 26% Higher Than the Week Prior, Bored Ape #6,588 Sells for $1.17M
Non-fungible token (NFT) sales jumped 26.76% higher this week, as NFT sales statistics show that $180.43 million in NFT trades were recorded this week compared to last week’s $142.33 million. While Ethereum-based NFTs captured the lion’s share of volume this week with $79.2 million, Ethereum-based NFT sales are down 23.65% during the past seven days. […]