Translated Interview | Startup launches tool for collective purchase and fractionalization of NFTs from OpenSea
The system allows NFTs for sale on the largest platform in the world to be purchased by groups, facilitating the access to the most desired tokens.
The Brazilian startup NFTFY announced this week the launch of the RockPool tool, which allows its users to acquire NFTs in a collective purchase system. A kind of NFT crowdfunding, which makes it possible to trade fractions of NFTs and opens space for anyone can own an NFT worth thousands or millions of dollars — or at least a part of it.
The Pools can be public, visible, and open to any platform users, or private, available only to guests of the pool creator. In this case, the tool also has the option of a Curator Fee for the pool creator, which the user can set at the desired value.
According to NFTFY, the platform aims to facilitate access and inclusion of users with lower purchasing power in the NFT market. Furthermore, the CEO explains that the automated system also allows the possession of, a lot or a little, NFT fractions: "The fractions are distributed according to what each participant in the pool has invested. If the user entered with the contribution of 50% of the monetary value, the user will have 50% of the NFT fractions” – explains Leonardo Carvalho, CEO of NFTFY, who emphasizes that the NFTs from OpenSea must be listed at a fixed price, it cannot be part of a bid or auctioned.
Leonardo also explains that users will still continue to buy NFTs on OpenSea. The difference is that now there is no longer the need to gather or use a large amount of money alone, in cryptocurrencies, to have a renowned asset. Just create a pool and join with others interested in acquiring that NFT to have a fraction of it.
"With this, it is possible to mitigate the risk of high value in the purchase of a single asset. It is possible to buy in a diversified way and have fractions of several NFTs. The only part you can buy or sell is your fraction, which brings more security to the process” – Leonardo highlighted.
When using RockPool to make a collective purchase of an NFT, users will receive tokens in their wallets that are equivalent to their respective shares in that NFT. The NFT, however, will be stored – in staking – in a smart contract, programmed to allow the sale or withdrawal of the NFT only upon payment of the exit price (which is distributed proportionally to the shareholders) or with 100% ownership of the fractions.
The platform generates revenue by charging a 5% fee on the fractionalized NFT value, which is divided among all those who buy a fraction of the token.
Despite being an interesting solution for those who participate in the NFTs market, seeking operations to buy and sell non-fungible tokens, the option of fractionalization loses meaning for those who seek the benefits of having an NFT of famous collections — such as access to groups, events or using it as a profile picture on social networks.
With fractionalization, these functions and utilities are "locked", and cannot be used by the shareholders of the token, since its "real" owner is a smart contract. NFTFY, however, intends to offer another tool in the future that will enable the use of these benefits:
"We are also developing a new tool that allows the management of the treasury. And with it, it will be possible to access some on-chain benefits such as withdrawing airdrops in addition to several other operations." – said Leonardo.
He also commented that even without access to benefits, the utilities of NFTs can be positive for the fraction owners:
"Once benefits are created or added to an NFT, its added value goes up until it becomes interesting to do the 'redeem' process that is, buy the entire NFT and explore all those benefits linked to it, such as airdrops, access to parties and groups, among others" – He added.
With the increase in interest in NFTs since last year, large collections have become an object of desire for many enthusiasts of this technology, but also inaccessible to most. With fractionalization, a new possibility of participation opens up — which, of course, requires a lot of care since it is a new market, with little regulation, a lot of volatility, and based mainly on speculation.