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The “Domestically made conscience” NFT project sold its entire collection of 1,000 roughly sketched cartoon profile images in an hour on February 23, 2022. Photo: Handout

Satirical Chinese NFT project sells out as investors brush aside developers’ warning that they’ll ‘take the money and run’

  • Buyers snapped up the entire collection of cartoon profile sketches sold by the ‘Domestically made conscience’ NFT project on Wednesday
  • Secondary trading volume of these digital assets on the OpenSea NFT marketplace surpassed 200 ether, or about US$537,000, in just a few hours on the same day
NFTs
A satirical Chinese non-fungible token (NFT) project whose sole purpose is to “sell pictures” has done just that, as the team behind it expects to leave the business, highlighting the get-rich-quick mindset in this digital market where fraudsters and scams are growing in number.

The project, named “Domestically made conscience”, on Wednesday started selling a collection of 1,000 roughly sketched cartoon profile images. The project described these NFTs as “specifically prepared for Chinese people”, while confidently assuring that the Chinese team behind the project will not scam their fellow countrymen, according to its website.

“If you don’t have the money but really like the collection, we suggest that you right click and download the pictures,” the project’s website said. “Please don’t borrow money or sell your house to participate.”

Despite the apparent risks involved in an NFT project whose developers suggested that they will “take the money and run”, online buyers snapped up all the digital assets that went on sale within an hour on Wednesday. Each NFT was priced at 0.01 ether, or roughly US$27.

The landing page of the website run by Chinese NFT project ‘Domestically made conscience’. Photo: Handout
Secondary trading volume of all these digital assets on Ethereum blockchain-based OpenSea, the world’s biggest marketplace for NFTs, surpassed 200 ether – roughly equivalent to US$537,000 – in just a few hours on the same day.

It is a result that has fast-tracked the goals of the “Domestically made conscience” NFT project. Before the sale, the project said on its website that all of its NFT images, each of which was set up as a JPEG file, are expected to be sold within this first quarter. The team behind it also suggested that they are likely to leave the business in the fourth quarter.

The team behind the NFT project could not be reached for comment.

NFTs are digital assets that are authenticated and traded on public blockchains. NFTs are not illegal in mainland China, and several tech giants – including South China Morning Post owner Alibaba Group Holding’s financial technology affiliate Ant Group, Tencent Holdings, JD.com and Baidu – as well as the official Xinhua News Agency – have launched NFTs branded as “digital collectibles”.

Chinese student loses NFT worth US$548,000 in phishing scam

Since NFTs have become mainstream around the world, many people have been snapping up various digital artworks and cartoon avatars for millions of dollars.

The sold-out sales event of the “Domestically made conscience” NFT project showed that the market is still booming and that there are plenty of investors who want to dabble in these digital assets.

Two Chinese engineers are behind the project, according to its website. It said the project was launched in response to various poorly built domestic NFT projects, including the recent Ali & His Friends project based on a well known cartoon character in China. Various technical flaws plagued the recent public NFT sale of Ali & His Friends, which was widely mocked across China’s social media.

They wanted to show that creating a well-made NFT project was possible, while using their Twitter account to post “objective” and educational information about NFTs. They also promised not to develop metaverse-related projects.

Edison Chen’s NFT project scrambles to appease disgruntled buyers

Still, the NFT space has become fertile ground for fraud and scams, with victims having little legal recourse. So-called rug pulls, in which a project’s team disappears with investors’ funds, are common occurrences.
A Chinese college senior, who admitted to going “all in” on NFTs, revealed on group messaging app Discord that he lost a rare NFT worth 200 ether, worth US$548,000, on Monday through a scam link.

Not every NFT developer can be as brutally honest as the team behind the “Domestically made conscience” NFT project, who put this message on their website: “It’s very likely that you will lose money with this project, don’t buy if you’re scared of losses. If you do lose money, please don’t call the police, thanks.”

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