
The team behind y00ts and DeGods was paid $3m to move the collection from Solana and to Polygon, according to a January 6 announcement from the company. The statement was made on Discord and copied to Twitter by Frank III, the founder of both projects.
Here is our latest picture @y00tsNFT Discord announcements. pic.twitter.com/qWxjBsexv6
– Frank III (@frankdegods) January 6, 2023
The developer previously announced on December 27 that the project would move to Polygon. This is widely seen as a death blow to the Solana network, as the network is already under pressure from the fallout from the collapsed FTX exchange. However, there is no evidence at the time that the y00ts team has received money in exchange for making the move
Let’s check the temperature #solana now the top 2 NFT projects are going away $SOL.
Is Solana dead?
– Ben Armstrong (@Bitboy_Crypto) December 26, 2022
Vitalik Buterin has since argued that claims of Solana’s death may have been exaggerated.
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In this new statement from Frank III, the founders of y00ts and DeGods stated that the team was offered a larger amount than they received from the Polygon deal, but decided to partner with Polygon because it would be the best platform for the project. Frank also tried to preemptively respond to the criticism that will arise from revealing the compensation received, stating:
“We do not take this deal for money. It is just a good bonus and we will use it effectively. We do this because it is the most exciting direction for y00ts as a project. Also, if you are very tired – all I ask. just channel your energy address the original question before automatically assuming the worst.
Frank III also stated that he “will not buy a lambo” with the money. In other words, the team will not use the money for its own consumption. Instead, the fund will hire new employees for “business development, graphic design, content creation, and event coordination,” which it says will allow the project to gain more mainstream acceptance.
Meanwhile, Solana may have recovered from the exodus of y00ts and DeGods, at least for now, as meme coins like Bonk are attracting trading activity back to the platform.