The astonishing virtual land sale of 888 ETH is said to mark the largest NFT transaction of all time.
A piece of virtual land in the blockchain market and the Axie Infinity gaming platform has just sold for a record sum in cryptocurrency.
Around 23:00 UTC on Monday, one of the platform’s newest community members, “Flying Falcon”, purchased the digital estate of nine adjacent Genesis blocks for 888.25 ether, approximately $1.5 million in that moment.
The transaction marks the largest non-fungible token (NFT) transaction of all time, surpassing the previous record of $800,000 set by Polyient Games and its purchase of Gala Games’ “Citadel of the Sun.”
“As the Genesis land parcels are the rarest and best-positioned parcels in Axie Infinity, they naturally suited my thesis,” Flying Falcon told CoinDesk via email. “What we are witnessing is a historic moment; the rise of digital nations with their own system of clearly delineated and irrevocable property rights.”
While the “epic 9” parcel is by far the largest sale in the NFT sector to date, there are approximately three other parcels that go for much higher – from 100 to 10,000 ETH.
Genesis NFTs are supply-limited virtual plots that feature a “unique aesthetic” and prime positioning within the Axie platform.
“As the largest digital land sale ever, this marks a significant development in the short history of NFTs,” seller Danny (who declined to provide a last name) told CoinDesk. “Virtual economies will be the new frontier for an increasingly digital world.”
The virtual land assets will be used for an upcoming game mode known as Axie Land, also known as Project K.
Danny recently bought a rare digital artwork from Hashmasks for 420 ETH (about $650,000 at the time of purchase, as CoinDesk reported last week).
Fixes crypto-collectibles website NonFungible’s statement incorrectly stating that F1 Delta Time held the previous record at $233K. The previous record holder was Polyient Games and their purchase of a Gala Games NFT.