Sotheby’s Launches its Curated NFT Marketplace

Luxury auction house Sotheby’s has announced the launch of its NFT marketplace. The platform supports the Ethereum and Polygon blockchains, providing users with on-chain peer-to-peer transactions. Technology solves the problem of secrecy in the art market. It allows collectors and artists to track the artworks and see the actual prices, which was impossible before using blockchain. 

Sotheby’s curators selected leading digital artists to launch the project. The first creators to be featured on the marketplace are Tyler Hobbs of Fidenza, Diana Sinclair, Refik Anadol, X Copy, Claire Silver, the Hacktao duo, IX Shells (Itzel Yard), Sam Sprat, Sarah Zucker, Pindar Van Arman, Sofia Crespo, Osinachi, and the ecology-focused non-profit organization Instituto Terra. 

The platform features brief information about each artist, an explanation of their work, its provenance, contact address, associated network, and token ID. In addition, it showcases current offers, in case there are any. 

Notably, Sotheby’s NFT marketplace will grant artists automatically paid royalties, transferred on-chain through the platform’s smart contracts. Sotheby’s will receive a 2.5 percent fee for each transaction. 

In addition, the auction house plans to provide expert guidance and context for each artwork. According to a Twitter post, Sotheby’s will organize thematic presentations to artist spotlights and develop an easy-to-navigate online experience. 

Sotheby’s NFT marketplace is already live. Individuals wishing to make a bid must register on the platform.