Sotheby’s, a renowned art auction house, is stepping up its non-fungible token (NFT) offerings by launching a new peer-to-peer secondary marketplace through its Web3 arm, Sotheby’s Metaverse. The platform will provide a curated selection of digital art by renowned artists from across the world, facilitating direct transactions between collectors through an integrated sales system. The fully on-chain marketplace is powered by the Ethereum and Polygon networks, and users can pay in ETH or MATIC, the native tokens of these networks. Artist Royalties Honored via Smart Contracts The secondary marketplace offers a new avenue for collectors to buy and sell NFTs, but what sets Sotheby’s Metaverse apart is its artist-first ethos. The platform will continue to honor artist royalties through smart contracts on its resale platform, which automatically pays artists according to their selected on-chain royalty rate. This commitment to supporting artists is rare in the NFT community, and it highlights Sotheby’s focus on creating a space for discerning collectors while respecting the artists’ intellectual property rights. Curated Collection of Digital Art Sotheby’s Metaverse has announced that it will rotate its featured artists every few months, with the platform’s launch collection featuring 13 leading digital artists, including Tyler Hobbs, Claire Silver, XCOPY, Diana Sinclair, and Pindar van Arman, among others. By providing a variety of digital art collections, Sotheby’s Metaverse aims to attract a diverse range of collectors to its platform. According to Michael Bouhanna, Sotheby’s vice president and head of NFTs and digital art, “The opportunity to expand Sotheby’s Metaverse with a fully on-chain peer-to-peer market is an important step forward in our evolution within the digital art and collectible space. To commemorate this event by opening our secondary market to a carefully selected group of artists, many of whom have been at the forefront of the movement and brought digital art to worldwide attention, further emphasizes Sotheby’s commitment to the NFT community and to creating a space for discerning collectors.” Sotheby’s Legacy in the Art World Sotheby’s has been around for over 275 years, and it has been an important player in the art world for centuries. In April 2021, the auction house entered the NFT market and has since made over $120 million in total NFT sales. Sotheby’s Metaverse has facilitated several record-breaking NFT sales, including a “Covid Alien” CryptoPunk that sold for $11.7 million in June 2021, the World Wide Web source code that sold for $5.4 million in July 2021, and a rare Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT that sold for $3.4 million in October 2021. Sotheby’s Metaverse is poised to make a significant impact in the NFT market, providing a secure and artist-centric platform for collectors to buy and sell digital art. Launch of Digital Art Gallery Sotheby’s Metaverse is also launching a digital art gallery through metaverse platform Oncyber in June, featuring different rooms curated by various artists and collectors, including the pseudonymous Cozomo De Medici. This new digital art gallery will provide collectors with a unique opportunity to view and purchase some of the world’s most exciting digital art collections in a virtual environment. In Conclusion Sotheby’s Metaverse is an exciting new addition to the NFT market, providing a secure and artist-centric platform for collectors to buy and sell digital art. The fully on-chain secondary marketplace is a significant step forward in the evolution of the digital art and collect