Morning Minute | Pudgy Penguins Are Building an L2
TylerD's Market Summary
🐧 Pudgy Penguin Parent Acquires Frame, Plans to Build L2
Luca said it would be a Pudgy Penguin summer.
He wasn't lying.
No NFT project has been busier or dominated the headlines than the Penguins.
What Happened?
On Friday afternoon, Frame announced it had been acquired by Igloo Inc (Pudgy parent company) to contribute towards building Abstract.
Abstract (Abstract Chain) is an L2 blockchain meant for "consumer crypto, pioneering culture, community and creativity onchain."
This means that Frame will no longer exist in its original proposed form, in a surprise change. Instead that team of power house engineers will come together with Luca and company to build Abstract.
A bit more on Abstract:
- Its core focus is on building community, culture and distribution to empower the consumer crypto revolution
- It uses ZK stack and EigenDA to provide a secure, fast, cheap and developer-friendly experience
- Frame rewards claimers will be honored in the Abstract ecosystem
More details on the specific and unique features of Abstract and how it differentiates from existing L2s are expected soon.
What Are They Saying?
Pudgy CEO Luca Netz commented on the acquisition:
"I am thrilled to announce that we have acquired Frame and its team to contribute towards building Abstract.
By combining forces, we will provide the infrastructure and distribution necessary to usher crypto into the consumer crypto revolution."
Cygaar, a lead dev for Frame and now Abstract said:
"It was a no-brainer decision to collaborate with Luca Netz and the Igloo team on a consumer-focused chain.
Combine the best distribution pipeline in crypto with our team's technical/product expertise and you have a real chance to reach users that have never used crypto before."
Luca went further to comment:
"The focal point for existing L2s has been centered around technological innovation rather than cultural expansion. In my opinion, L2s are the rails for the onchain culture economy. To fuel this economy, you need community, culture, and distribution, and I believe nobody in crypto does those 3 things better than us. Our mission has always been to bring crypto to the masses, and this acquisition marks a significant step towards achieving that goal."
Powerful statements.
Why It Matters
This is the biggest acquisition the Pudgy Penguins team has made to date, as the Frame devs are a widely respected team.
Luca has proven to be a master marketer, distributor and just a general "doer", and now he has a team of tech experts to build out the next piece of the Igloo vision.
This also means a token is likely coming at some point in the future (as it does with nearly every L2), though no specifics are known.
Abstract is bigger than just a "Pudgy chain," which does raise the question of who else will come build on Abstract? And why?
That will be a key question for Luca to answer in the coming days and weeks, especially with Blast entering season 2 and other NFT projects (Bored Apes, Azuki) launching their own L2s in the near-ish future.
This also likely sets up a Blast vs Abstract "battle" in the coming months as they fight for builders and users.
Overall, the stakes are as high as ever for Luca, Pudgy's and Igloo with Abstract - now it's time to execute.
🚚 What else is happening in NFTs?
Here is the list of other notable headlines from the day in NFTs:
- Solana led NFT trading volume with $6.4M (+90%) on the day; ETH was next with $4.6M (+33%) and then BTC with $1.5M
- ETH NFT leaders were mixed; BAYC -5% to 10.09 ETH, Pudgy -2% at 10.3 ETH, Milady +4% to 5.8, Remilio +6% to 1.6 and Azuki -1% to 3.39
- Pixelady Maker and Treeverse were top movers on the day, jumping 60% and 40% respectively
- BTC NFT leaders were slightly red; NodeMonkes -1% at 0.19 BTC, Puppets -1% at 0.148 BTC, OMB -6% to 0.22 and Quantum Cats -1% at 0.263
- The Runes leaders were mixed, led by DOG +6% at $630 mc and BAMK +62% to $167M fdv
- Solana NFTs were very green on the huge surge in volume; Mad Lads +16% at 105 SOL, SMB Gen 2 +30% at 38, DeGods +11% at 22, Tensorians +14% at 17
- One wallet swept nearly $1M worth of Mad Lads last night, helping drive its floor up 16% to 105 SOL
💰 Token, Airdrop & Protocol Tracker
Here's a rundown of major token or airdrop news from the day:
- Blast introduced its Blast Governance and Proposal 1: Enabling Points for $BLAST holders (BLAST even at $2.14B fdv), along with the introduction of 2 councils to facilitate governance - the Token Council and the Progress Council
- Warpcast added a new instant pay feature
- Futureverse announced a strategic partnership with Animoca Brands
- Major token unlocks are coming this month including $127M in ALT, $94M in XAI, $79M in APT, $76M in ARB and $53M in SUI
🌎 Around Crypto and Web3
A few other Crypto and Web3 headlines that caught my eye:
- Crypto majors are green this morning to start the week; BTC +2% at $62,760; ETH +2.3 at $3,460, SOL +4% at $147
- Memecoin majors are slightly green with DOGE +2%, PEPE +2%, WIF +11%, BONK +8%; MOG rips 17% to $720M and another new ATH
- Stevewilldoit launched a memecoin HERO which ran to $60M in its first hour of trading (now at $45M)
- PoliFi tokens soared and then pulled back as odds of Biden dropping out of the U.S. Presidential election ran to 50% over the weekend; OBEMA +15% at $14M is the current nominee leader
- The SEC filed new lawsuits against Consensys, Lido and Rocket Pool on Friday in a sign that Gensler is not slowing down
- 21Shares filed for a Solana ETF, marking the 2nd player to do so
- A new Solana Blinks called TipLinks allows for sending anyone with a google account crypto in seconds to get started
- Roaring Kitty filed an SEC form declaring ownership of 9M shares of $CHWY stock, sending the stock up 19% pre-market and the CHWY token on Solana up 550% to $6.5M, all while he is being sued for securities fraud for his role on GME in a new class action lawsuit
🚀 Memecoin Movers
- $HERO (+70,000%, $46M market cap, SOL)
- $BAKED (+23,000%, $13M market cap, SOL)
- $HOPPY (+24%, $43M market cap, ETH)
- $ZYN (+24%, $48M market cap, ETH)
- $WOLF (+23%, $160M market cap, SOL)
📈 NFT Floor Price Increase (ETH)
- Pixelady Maker (64%, 0.12 ETH Floor)
- Treeverse (39%, 0.32 ETH)
- CryptoPhunks (38%, 0.14 ETH)
- Rug Genesis (29%, 0.08 ETH)
- Parallel Avatars (25%, 0.44 ETH)
🗓 Upcoming Mints and Events
Today is a very slow day of mints to kick off the week.
Memes by 6529 are back with SZN 8 after a two-week break, with artist Raphael Erba doing the card.
Otherwise it's quiet, and likely will be this week with the 4th of July holiday coming in the U.S.
See the full list and dive in for more details with Swizzy's daily mint monitor.
- Bitcoin Keys (10:00 a.m. ET)
- Memes by 6529 (11:00 a.m. ET)
- Sheldrick x Tender x Verse - In Spirit (2:00 p.m. ET)
Enjoy this write-up and/or want to sponsor the Morning Minute? Follow along with me on Twitter @tyler_did_it or reach out via email to tyler.warner@luckytrader.com.
