Christie’s, a 255-year-old British auction house, announced on Tuesday the launch of an on-chain platform for non-fungible token (NFT) art that is designed to allow auctions to take place entirely on-chain on the Ethereum network. .

The new platform, called ‘Christie’s 3.0’, is set to allow NFT auctions to take place entirely on the ETH network from start to finish. The entire auction process, including all pre-sale and post-sale transactions, will automatically take place and be recorded on the Ethereum blockchain.

In previous NFT auctions, payments from winning bidders were not always made on a blockchain. Sales of NFTs such as “Everydays, CryptoPunks” by Beeple, among others, had previously been conducted by Christie’s through a third-party partnership with NFT marketplace MakersPlace.

Christie’s new marketplace now allows transactions to take place in a similar way to the popular OpenSea marketplace, allowing payments to be made in Ether (ETH). Christie’s said the new platform was developed in partnership with blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis, metaverse development firm Spatial, and smart contract development startup NFT Manifold.

The platform’s inaugural sale will take place on Wednesday, September 28, and will be accompanied by the launch of nine NFTs by artist Diana Sinclair. The online auction will be held simultaneously with a solo exhibition at Christie’s New York, bringing young emerging artists into an international and digitally savvy market.

Nicole Sales Giles, director of digital art sales at Christie’s, spoke about the importance of moving the entire auction process to the chain: “By incorporating regulatory tools, such as anti-money laundering and sales tax, we have created an inclusive solution where both veteran and new NFT collectors can feel secure when transacting with Christie’s 3.0.”

2021 was the year of art NFTs, with even the most traditional auction houses embracing the new trend of digital art.

In April 2021, Sotheby’s, another long-standing and internationally recognized fine art auctioneer firm in the world, sold a series of digital artworks created by an enigmatic artist who calls himself Pak for more than $17 million in three days. . In October last year, Christie’s auction house surpassed $100 million in NFT sales worldwide for the first time.

NFT art sales have been doing so well that major auction houses, Sotheby’s and Christie’s, have committed to creating their own infrastructure to bridge the gap between fine art and digital art spaces and even handle blockchain payments ( a third party had previously handled payments for NFT sales).

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