PFP Staking Update: Introducing $CROWN Vouchers
NOTE: This is a meaningful change, and we suggest you read this article in full!
Beginning with Season 18, the concept of staking your Photo Finish PFP to earn $CROWN is ending.
In its place, we are releasing new collections of NFTs called $CROWN Vouchers.
It's important to note that while this change means the process of claiming $CROWN has changed, the allocation due to each PFP is unchanged.
Let's lay it out and talk about it so we're all on the same page once Season 18 rolls around.
The State of Staking: Backstory & Facts
When I look back at the past two-plus years of our development on Photo Finish™ LIVE, I am constantly reminded of the minefield we have had to navigate to end up where we are.
From the FTX debacle to the loss of royalties to the bull and bear markets, we've all been forged in fire, and I couldn't be more thrilled with how we've stuck to our guns and delivered on the vision we always said we were going to deliver on.
However, I have to be honest: I believe we made a critical mistake early on regarding one key aspect of our design: PFP STAKING.
Well, it's not that we did it, but how we have done it.
We always wanted to be different from what we saw in the Web3 space.
We saw early seed-round investors taking massive token allocations with 3-month unlocks and dumping out early on retail at massive gains.
We saw development teams taking larger allocations than their community.
We saw teams insider trading and market selling before news events.
You name it, we've all seen it. There are many bad actors around here, which is no news to anyone.
So, on February 3, 2022, we announced that our staking rewards would be a massive 50% of the token supply, vested over two years, TO THE COMMUNITY.
The reasoning was simple: We would build a community of evangelists and early adopters who would play the game and spread awareness as they built their stables due to the allocation. Then, the PFPs—Stylish Studs and Fine Fillies—would be so valuable that the royalties would pay for operations, allowing us to keep building the game worry-free.
In practice, this has yet to play out as we expected.
There are 15,000 NFTs.
They are mostly all locked away.
They add confusion to new players.
They provide us basically no royalties.
They provide us basically no network effects.
The unfortunate reality is that many of them are staked by people who aren't playing the game—more than 25 million remaining $CROWN worth, to be exact.
With all that being said, we still believe the Photo Finish™ PFP mint represents one of the most extraordinary mints in Web3 history.
No gaming project – anywhere, ever – has delivered the sort of returns that NFT holders have enjoyed!
While we're proud of delivering more than expected, we think we can re-engineer this system to help us reach business goals for the entire game and ecosystem.
These goals are:
- Grab more eyeballs through network effects
- Generate more royalties
- Drive more engagement into the racing ecosystem
The Path Ahead
With Season 18, every single PFP will immediately halt earning new CROWN via staking and will then be automatically “linked” with nine (9) $CROWN Voucher NFTs.
When you, the player, un-stake the PFP(s), you will automatically receive the accompanying $CROWN Vouchers in your same wallet simultaneously.
What is a $CROWN Voucher?
The voucher is simply an IOU for a set amount of $CROWN.
IMPORTANTLY – each voucher is redeemable only within a specific Photo Finish season. A voucher not redeemed in its targeted season loses its value entirely.
Let's look at a very simple, practical example:
The iconic Stylish Stud #9925 had a $CROWN allocation of 19,402 planned to be released over two years of staking. This is important – nothing about that allocation is changing. But now, instead of releasing the CROWN through staking/claiming mechanics, the owner will automatically receive nine (9) $CROWN Vouchers, each worth ~746.23 $CROWN. (2 years = 26 seasons in Photo Finish, 19402 / 26 = ~746.23).
Looking Forward
These NFTs are an innovative new approach to hybridized DeFi, as people can trade them amongst themselves on exchanges to their heart's content. We're proud to partner with Tensor to offer special rewards and giveaways once this rolls out. Stay tuned for more news here!
Unlike the PFPs, the vouchers become much more liquid and available to the ecosystem at large. We hope this can drive a lot more volume within the entire Solana trading world, giving NFTs a little shot in the arm and showing the world a whole new set of interesting use cases that Solana can help provide.
The Stylish Studs / Fine Fillies become a more straightforward set of NFT collectibles, no longer having a strange and hidden underlying value proposition that very few people know about.
Trading volume on these vouchers could generate royalties that help strengthen the ecosystem with racing incentives or prize pools.
The vouchers' design and seasonal expiration date ensure that players need to check in EVERY SEASON to stay that much closer to the ecosystem. This could eventually funnel players back into ownership, racing, and wagering.
We are very excited to see what this new experiment will do.
Onwards and upwards,
Ian Cummings
Founder & CEO
