Kevin O’Leary turns to NFTs and puts millions of rare, physical collectivity, particularly high-end sports cards.
The “Shark Tank” star and O’Leary Ventures Chairman recently bought a $ 13 million dual logoman card featuring Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan, he said in an interview with Jennifer Sanasie of CoinDesk TV. The card is one-of-a-type, and O’Leary-often called “Mr. Wonderful” —it as a foundation of its growing “index” of unique collections.
“Most returns for 20 years have accumulated the collectors who buy pieces of pieces,” O’Leary said, comparing the approach to his long -term investment in Andy Warhol Art and Luxury Watches. Instead of being released, O’Leary worked with two investors to get the card. “I would rather own 33 and a third of it than zero,” he said.
Pouring millions into rare sports cards is not a desire project – this is a calculated stake. “Sometimes it exchanged $ 75,000 years and years ago, but it shows you appreciation for price,” O’Leary said.
“The older men cry when they see it,” he added.
Tokenization to NFT
Despite the overlap with tokenization, O’Leary clearly made it clear that he had no interest in NFTs.
“The NFTs have become a fad,” he said. “I was just buying properties of physical ownership … that (NFT) fad came and went. I’m fortunate that I didn’t get involved there because I didn’t understand it.”
O’Leary’s sharp removal of the NFT will come only a few years after the market explodes in popularity. In 2021, the number of trade in the NFT Marketplaces advanced to $ 25 billion, from just $ 95 million last year, according to data from Dappradar and Chainalysis. Celebrities like Snoop Dogg, Paris Hilton and Steph Curry are in a hurry to launch collections, while major brands including Nike, Adidas and Coca-Cola have entered the space.
But the hype is short -lived. NFT sales volumes fell over 80% in the mid -2022 amid the broader crypto collapse, and prices for high -profile collections such as bored yacht clubs and cryptopunks fell from their peaks, according to data.
O’Leary’s issue with the NFT is the lack of physical existence. “Where’s the owner? Where can I put my white gloves and hold it? That’s what you can’t do with an NFT.”
However, he said his collectives that “one day will be elected,” because “it is easier to deal with and manage them in an index that way.”
Wall Street in the chain
O’Leary frame this shift as part of a larger mission: “Wall Street on Chain.”
He believes that blockchain infrastructure can be modern as to how genitals are managed – improving transparency, liquidity and trust in markets that are highly dependent on mediators.
He remains bullish with foundational cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, and infrastructure acts like mining and exchange operators.
