TL;DR Breakdown
• Sotheby’s is a luxury auction house that will allow payments with Ether and Bitcoin in July at a diamond auction in Hong Kong.
• It is a 101-carat pear-shaped diamond with an estimated value of $15 million.
Luxury auction house Sotheby’s will hold a diamond auction in Hong Kong in July and has accepted payments in cryptocurrencies. It is a rare 101 carat pear-shaped diamond with an estimated $10 and $15 million value. The auction house has accepted previews for Banksy’s NTF and artwork.
Sotheby’s will accept Ether
Sotheby’s is the largest luxury auction house in the world. This auction house now has accepted Bitcoin and Ether as payment methods for a rare 101-carat diamond.
The diamond is called The Key 10138; it is pear-shaped and weighs 101.38 carats. It has been classified as a flawless and chemically pure diamond, making it a rare diamond. The sale is scheduled for July 9 in Hong Kong and is expected to bring HK $78 million and HK $118 million.
The luxury auction house has claimed that it will accept crypto payments, especially in Ether and Bitcoin for the diamond. Sotheby’s would accept bids at the live sale or before the auction.
The Key 10138 is the first diamond considered a major diamond worldwide and will be auctioned in cryptocurrencies. It has been named the key 10138 to symbolize a new era towards crypto trading and technology. Sotheby’s has said in the online auction statement that it is a key to world history.
Sotheby’s is open to cryptocurrencies
Luxury auction company Sotheby’s has been open to cryptocurrencies as payment methods before. At a May sale of a Banksy artwork and at the non-fungible token auction called CryptoPunk or NFT held in early June. Characters from Covid Alien, CryptoPunk, sold for $11.8 million.
This year, digital currencies have emerged as a major factor in auction sales after the boom in digital assets exploded in the past 18 months.
So far, this luxury auction house has limited items primarily to artworks, digital collections like NFT, and the diamond auction. The latter marks a milestone for the crypto world and gives other auction houses to accept cryptocurrencies such as Ether and Bitcoin.
Many experts and competent authorities indicate that the crypto volatility market represents a risk for companies and investors. Every day, cryptocurrencies are more accepted around the world as payment methods.
On their Twitter account, Sotheby’s has described the sale as a significant moment for the market and trade evolution.
