World-Renowned Digital Artist Pak Breaks Highest NFT Sale In History With First of Its Kind Drop on Nifty Gateway

NEW YORK, Dec. 7, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, digital artist Pak and Nifty Gateway, a premier NFT marketplace, announced that the auction of Merge set the world record for money generated by a single artwork publicly by a living artist. Furthermore, the collection debuted a mechanic novel to the world of digital art, where patrons who bought into the project during the sale period unlocked access to an exclusive NFT that expanded in size as they added to their collection. In 48 hours, 28,983 collectors spent $91,806,519 to buy 312,686 total units of mass.

From Dec 2 to Dec 4 users were able to collect as much mass as they wanted. At the end of the sale they will receive a dynamic NFT that merges all the mass they accumulated during the auction. Collectors who acquire more mass on the secondary market "merge" purchased mass with their own to grow their NFT. The mechanism allows for mass available on the market to consolidate, lowering the number of tokens over time while the total units of mass remain constant. This innovative mechanic highlights the social nature of art collecting and market scarcity, while utilizing NFT technology in an innovative way.

An enigmatic creator operating at the frontlines of digital art for decades, Pak chose Nifty Gateway specifically to create a boundary-pushing piece of artwork. Previously, Pak innovated the idea of Open Editions on Nifty Gateway, allowing collectors to purchase as many NFTs as they wish during the sale period for a fixed price in parallel to the collection revealing itself over the course of the sale. In Merge, Pak created a new way to reward patrons that is uniquely possible using blockchain technology and Nifty Gateway's infrastructure. 

Reflecting on the milestone their artwork just achieved, Pak said, "This will be the first time, ever, such an achievement is made, and not by a third-party auction house, but a web3 tech company."

"This is an incredible moment for NFTs with one of the top digital artists setting this record at Art Basel," said Duncan Cock Foster, co-founder of Nifty Gateway. "This is further validation for NFTs as a medium of art and innovation that could only be integrated through blockchain technology."

The news comes on the heels of a number of notable developments for Nifty Gateway. The company recently became the first NFT platform to offer collectors significantly reduced GAS fees (reducing such costs 70 percent) thanks to its unique custodial infrastructure. Nifty Gateway also began listing NFTs from other marketplaces and enabling users to list NFTs in ETH directly from their wallets and buy directly from other user's wallets in ETH.

The previous auction record for a single artwork sold publicly by a living artist is US $91.1 million for Jeff Koons' 1986 sculpture, Rabbit, set in 2019.

For more information, please visit NiftyGateway.com/collections/pakmerge.

About Nifty Gateway
Nifty Gateway is an all-in-one platform that makes it easy to buy, sell, and store digital art and collectibles, otherwise known as Nifties (or NFTs). Nifty Gateway was founded by Duncan and Griffin Cock Foster in 2018, and acquired by Gemini in 2019, with the belief that crypto networks and the blockchain have the power to fundamentally change the art world by creating greater choice, independence, and opportunity for artists, creators, and collectors.

About Gemini
Gemini is a platform that allows customers to buy, sell, store, and earn cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, ether, and DeFi tokens. Gemini's simple, innovative, and secure products are built to empower the individual. Gemini was founded in 2014 by twin brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss.

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SOURCE Gemini