Last week’s NFT news was thick with controversy. Fahmi Reza drew another monkey, also parodying the Sultan of Selangor, and was selling it to raise funds for the Freedom of Expression Legal Defence Fund.
Another artist that ruffled the government’s feathers is the person behind the Dickheads NFTs project. The name is pretty self-explanatory in terms of the nature of the art, and MCMC was fast on the artist’s heels.
On a milder and more festive note though, AEON Malaysia dropped a collection of Raya themed NFTs.
But that’s not the only Raya-themed NFT that was dropped.
Maybe Malaysia’s first NFT Raya song?
With a rather straightforward name, “Ini Lagu Hari Raya” (this is a Hari Raya song) by composer and producer, Edrie Hashim, in collaboration with Kelab NFT Malaysia, is a song NFT that was released on OpenSea on April 30.
It’s under a project called Planet Edrie. On OpenSea, there’s no floor price available for each copy of the NFT. Instead, interested buyers will bid for an NFT.
But over on Edrie’s site, one NFT costs RM100, while 10 NFTs cost RM500.
Edrie told Astro Awani that the decision to create such an NFT came after wanting a change in how Raya was celebrated.
For the past two Raya celebrations during the pandemic, he felt that it was still celebrated rather traditionally, so this year, he wanted to bring something different using Web3 technology.
Hence, the creation of “Ini Lagu Hari Raya”. Each NFT comes with three utilities for owners, including getting exclusive access to working with Edrie to explore music-related business opportunities, and the chance to work with other renowned Malaysian composers.
With this year’s Raya dropping with little warning and being over just like that, perhaps this NFT might keep collectors in a festive mood for a bit longer.
Promoting responsible car ownership & NFTs at a go
MyEG has launched the “Compare by MyEG X NFT Pangolin” initiative with the objective to make NFT ownership accessible to everyone.
Users of Compare by MyEG, an online platform for comparing and buying car insurance and takaful renewal services, are eligible to receive free commemorative customisable NFTs (Compare Commemorative NFT) minted on NFT Pangolin, an NFT marketplace launched by MyEG in March 2022.
This offer will be for a limited time only, and users must first compare and renew their car insurance and road tax on Compare by MyEG for a chance to collect the Compare Commemorative NFT.
The benefits that will be coming soon with the NFT include car breakdown assistance, discounts and special rates, early-bird access presumably for future MyEG services, and more.
MyEG’s group managing director Wong Thean Soon had expressed the group’s belief that the application of NFTs will go far beyond digital art, and shared their intent to pioneer NFTs pegged to the ownership of mainstream assets. For example, one’s ownership of their vehicle registration number, for a start.
What the company is doing with the Compare Commemorative NFT is a strategic move to grow the traction of NFT Pangolin and MyEG’s relevance in the Web3 era, but whether it’s one that will achieve their goals above remains to be seen.
A time for crypto celebration
This one’s not wholly NFT-related, but it’s one that might be exciting for enthusiasts of NFTs, crypto, and blockchain.
Malaysian crypto merchandise and commerce store CryptoBilis in collaboration with Tokenize Malaysia, a digital trading platform, will be hosting the Bitcoin Pizza Day 2022 on May 27, 2022.
It’s meant to celebrate a tradition that dates back to May 22, 2010, when one of the most historical real-world purchases using bitcoin was made.
The purchase? Two large pizzas, bought with 10,000 bitcoins. This marked a milestone in cryptocurrency history for the community, just a year after bitcoin was created.
12 years later, bitcoin has only grown in its utility, with supporters believing it’s capable enough to compete with global fiat currencies.
For the May 27 celebration at 6PM, what awaits participants are free-flow pizzas, personalised NFTs, goodies, and giveaways, along with a dive into the history of bitcoin that covers mining, payments, DeFi, and digital ownership.
All this will happen at Brick Studio, Damansara Technology Park, 6, Jalan PJU 3/45. The hosts are expecting quite a large turnout, so they’re capping the event at 300 pax. A full event pass will cost RM149, while a corporate pass starts at RM749.
Those interested to join can learn more or buy their tickets here.
- If you’ve got something NFT-related to share that’s both exciting and locally-relevant, hit us up with your story at malaysia.team@vulcanpost.com.
- Read more of our NFT content here.
Featured Image Credit: Edrie Hashim / MyEG / CryptoBilis
