Here at Maecenas, we are increasingly excited about next week’s token crowdsale. The financial backing and community support from the crowdsale catapult us on our long-term path to create our decentralized art gallery.

So we are really pleased that we can now also share news that Pantera Capital will make a significant investment in buying our ART tokens. Plus, just as important, they will join us as an active partner on Maecenas’s journey. The press release copied below gives the context of the benefits of the partnership with this top blockchain investment firm. And it is really interesting to see a key reason behind this partnership. Check out the quote from co-chief investment officer Joey Krug

“We completely agree blockchain has unlocked the huge potential for asset tokensiation — and the $65 billion art industry is a wonderful first case to make this a reality. This is our way of making masterpieces affordable — democratising access to fine art investment.”

Pantera Capital To Invest in Maecenas Token Crowdsale

Partnership boosts platform for trading art masterpieces

New York, New York, Aug 31, 2017 — Pantera Capital, the leading blockchain investment firm and one of the largest institutional owners of bitcoins, will make a significant investment next week in the token crowdsale of Maecenas, a decentralized art gallery democratizing access to fine art. Pantera Capital, which has launched a $100 million hedge fund for cryptoasset tokens, is actively partnering with Maecenas in creating a marketplace for famous artworks.

The Maecenas public token crowdsale will start on September 7, 2017 at 5pm CEST. It will offer ART tokens that allow users to auction masterpieces from the likes of Picasso and Goya on its blockchain-powered platform. Maecenas is also among the first projects to pass through Cofound.it, the leading platform for training the world’s most promising blockchain startups. Maecenas will leverage Cofound.it Priority Pass to host a token pre-sale commencing September 5, 2017 at 5pm CEST. The minimum sale threshold is $3 million USD, with a milestone target of $10 million USD, and a $20 million USD hard cap.

Maecenas injects liquidity and transparency into a $65 billion annual fine art industry currently dominated by exclusive auction houses and private dealers. Museums, galleries, and collectors sell masterpieces directly to the Maecenas community without paying traditional transaction fees of up to 30 percent.

“Tokenizing existing asset classes that are currently illiquid is a great application of blockchain tech,” Joey Krug, Pantera’s co-chief investment officer, said. “The art market is a perfect one to tackle first because it has extremely high fees on both sides (approaching 50% of the artwork if you combine them), very little liquidity, high barriers to entry, and less implementation issues than say tokenizing real estate.”

“I’m also excited about the idea of art as a new asset class in general, and think Maecenas can help democratize access to it. We’re excited to play an active role as a partner of Maecenas to help them succeed leveraging our network and experience with Ethereum,” Krug added.

Pantera Capital was formed in 2013, comprising the first U.S.-based bitcoin investment firm. The company has invested in numerous cryptoasset heavyweights, including blockchain-based remittance service Abra, leading South Korean bitcoin exchange Korbit, and altcoins Ripple and Zcash.

“We are thrilled to have Pantera Capital as investors and partners. Their excellent reputation and vast experience helping blockchain startups grow, combined with their extensive network worldwide is going to be instrumental in helping Maecenas be successful,” Maecenas CEO Marcelo Garcia Casil said. “We are delighted to have the support of Pantera Capital’s team and we very much look forward to the exciting journey ahead of us.”

Maecenas’s ART utility token functions as a clearing and settlement mechanism for all transactions of artwork on the Maecenas ecosystem. Blockchain technology is used to break down a single piece into many fragments and create tamper-proof digital certificates denoting ownership. Supporters will be able to use ART tokens in auctions to bid for these certificates.

Maecenas has studied global financial jurisdictions, built a minimal viable product, and lined up masterpieces to be offered on the platform. Maecenas will dedicate up to $10 million USD towards operational costs to launch its platform and open in markets around the world. Contributions beyond the $10 million will be dedicated to art financing to stimulate activity on the platform.

Supporters can participate in the Maecenas crowdsale with Ethereum (ETH).

Visit maecenas.co to find out more about the project.

To join the ART Token pre-sale starting 5 Sep at 5pm CEST, click here.

Come have a chat with the team on our slack channel.