Yuga Labs criticised over Bitcoin-NFT auction mechanics

The crypto community criticised Yuga Labs for the ‘primitive’ auction mechanics in launching the Bitcoin-NFT TwelveFold series.

Unlike Ethereum-based NFTs, Bitcoin-based NFTs do not have an open marketplace. To participate in the auction, you must send BTC to a Yuga Labs wallet, where they will be held until the auction ends. If a bid is unsuccessful, the assets are returned.

Yuga is establishing REALLY bad precedence running an auction like this. They are taking custody of bidders’ bitcoin with a promise to send back unsuccessful bids. Not doubting they’ll do that, but this model is a scammer’s dream, and credible players need to set better example.

— ordinally (@veryordinally) March 6, 2023

“Yuga is creating a really bad precedent by launching such an auction. They take custody of bidders’ bitcoins with the promise to return unsuccessful bids. I have no doubt they will do that, but this model is a scammer’s dream,” wrote a user under the pseudonym veryordinally.

He added that “authoritative players should set a better example.” Casey Rodarmor, the Ordinals developer, agreed with him.

“Such actions prove that claim about some people: ‘One shitcoiner today — a shitcoiner forever’,” he wrote.

Dear @yugalabs,@veryordinally is right. Actions like this prove that for some entities and people: “Once a shitcoiner always a shitcoiner.”

If I, personally, Casey Rodarmor, ever see you, Yuga labs, the entity, fuck around with degenerate bullshit like this again, I will wash… https://t.co/COARsn4X0o

— Casey Rodarmor (@rodarmor) March 6, 2023

In the early hours of March 6, Yuga Labs launched an auction to sell TwelveFold NFTs on the Bitcoin blockchain. Bids will last about 24 hours. The starting price is 20,000 satoshis (~$5).

The studio unveiled TwelveFold at the end of February. The series comprises 300 digital items, 12 of which will be reserved for charitable causes. For Yuga Labs this is the first collection released outside the Ethereum blockchain.

The new NFTs are based on the Ordinals protocol. It allows content to be inscribed on the Bitcoin network using satoshis (serialization) to record data in the Bitcoin transaction’s signature.

Earlier, Litecoin developers created an analogue of the Ordinals protocol, which allowed issuing digital artifacts on the Litecoin blockchain in a manner analogous to the Bitcoin network.