• Yuga Labs launched its first-ever Bitcoin NFT collection on March 5th, but it was met with immense backlash.
• The main developer of Ordinals, which are powering Bitcoin’s NFTs, criticized the collection for taking custody of all bidders‘ BTC without providing adequate security.
• Crypto enthusiasts called it a ‚cash grab‘ and demanded that more credible players set a better example.
Yuga Labs Launches First-Ever Bitcoin NFT Collection
On March 5th, 2021, Web3 behemoth Yuga Labs launched its first-ever Bitcoin Non-Fungible Token (NFT) collection on Ordinals. The 300 generative abstract art pieces inscribed onto Bitcoin made headlines across the crypto world—but not in a positive way.
Ordinals Creator Criticizes Yuga Labs
The main developer of Ordinals, Casey Rodarmor, strongly criticized the collection for taking custody of all bidders‘ BTC without providing adequate security or returning it to them even if they weren’t the highest bidder. Rodarmor went so far as to say he would personally wash his hands of Yuga Labs forever if they ever attempted something like this again.
Crypto Enthusiasts Call It A ‚Cash Grab‘
The criticism didn’t stop there—crypto Twitter has been up in arms over what is being called a ‚cash grab.‘ Ordinally argued that credible players need to set a better example and some users have even reported not seeing their transactions registered after sending their BTC to bid on an NFT.
Yuga Labs Responds To Criticism
In response to the criticism, Yuga Labs has released a statement saying that they are working hard to ensure user experience is improved and that they take customer feedback seriously. They also emphasized that they take great care in ensuring user funds remain secure at all times.
Conclusion
Despite the initial backlash against Yuga Lab’s first foray into NFTs with Bitcoin’s blockchain, it remains unclear how this will affect their future projects or whether any changes will be made before future collections launch. In any case, it certainly opened up an important conversation about user safety and proper protocols for custodial services when handling digital assets like cryptocurrency and NFTs.