Welcome to the OpenSea digest. Let’s look back through the biggest NFT and web3 news of the week.

OpenSea launches $1+ million flagship collection to champion digital culture

OpenSea announced the launch of the OpenSea Flagship Collection, a $1+ million commitment to acquiring, curating, and celebrating digital art and culture.

The Flagship Collection is OpenSea’s first formal NFT reserve, designed to showcase NFTs as cultural artifacts and support the artists and collectors who’ve shaped the space.

OpenSea will acquire works steadily over the coming months, targeting one acquisition every few days. Purchases will span everything from works by emerging artists to rare, high-profile NFTs, with a focus on long-term cultural relevance. Each moment will be shared with the community to celebrate and amplify the cultural momentum of NFTs. Learn more here.

OpenSea partners with Coinbase One for its new rewards phase

OpenSea is introducing a new phase of its rewards program, called Treasure Chest, beginning Sept. 15.

As part of this rollout, Coinbase One subscribers—members of Coinbase’s paid service that waives trading fees and provides account support—will receive a 5 percent boost on their OpenSea activity along with surprise Shipments, a set of additional rewards tied to engagement on the marketplace.

Current Coinbase One users can link the wallet they plan to use for rewards, and new subscribers can sign up directly to take part.

Trimont uses JPMorgan blockchain system to speed loan payments

Real estate lender Trimont is reportedly adopting JPMorgan’s blockchain platform to automate parts of its loan payment process, which will now use digital records on a secure ledger.

Trimont said the change will help streamline how money moves between borrowers and lenders, cutting down the time payments take to clear to minutes.

The adoption marks another example of financial firms using blockchain technology to manage routine transactions such as real estate loans.

Christie’s shutters digital art department amid restructuring

Christie’s has closed its digital art department as part of a broader reorganization under new CEO Bonnie Brennan, who joined the auction house in February.

A spokesperson told Now Media the company will continue to handle digital works within its larger 20th and 21st Century Art category rather than through a standalone division.

Christie’s has been a key player in the rise of digital art, from the sale of Beeple’s $69.3 million Everydays: The First 5000 Days sale in 2021 to the launch of its on-chain platform Christie’s 3.0 in 2022, whose future is now unclear.

Jack Butcher previews Gas Wars as penultimate Art Blocks Curated release

Jack Butcher, the designer behind Visualize Value, has previewed Gas Wars, the second-to-last release in Art Blocks’ Curated program. 

In a teaser video shared on X, he described a launch beginning with “Simulation Zero,” a 24-hour, no-reserve auction, followed by 499 fixed-price works available in 500-second windows. 

Framed as “five hundred survival simulations,” each mint will cost one dollar per digital “bullet” and place the project among the final collections in Art Blocks’ flagship series.

CyberKongz launches $KONG token for community rewards

CyberKongz has introduced $KONG, a rebrand of its earlier $BANANA token. In a recent interview with OpenSea, CEO Henry the Grape described $KONG as the “brand liquidity layer that represents CyberKongz and NFT culture,” built for people who believe in the cultural significance of NFTs.

The project said $KONG will exist exclusively on Ethereum with a total supply of 1 billion and mechanics such as staking, seasonal reward distribution, and deflationary burn events.

At launch, holders of $BANANA can convert at a 1:25 ratio, and 2% of the supply will be airdropped to OpenSea users.

Solana approves Alpenglow upgrade to speed up transactions

Solana community members have voted to adopt Alpenglow, the blockchain’s most significant upgrade to date.

The change reportedly revamps Solana’s consensus mechanism and reduces transaction finality from about 12.8 seconds to 150 milliseconds, a speed said to be more comparable to traditional financial markets.

The update comes days before Nasdaq listed SOL Strategies, the exchange's first publicly traded Solana treasury.

NFL All Day launches autographed NFTs and stadium giveaways

NFL All Day, the licensed digital collectibles platform built by Dapper Labs on Flow, is adding autographed NFTs and in-person activations for the new season. 

The platform will reportedly release rookie highlights paired with verified digital signatures and distribute free collectibles at games with the Patriots, Bengals, Jaguars, and Texans.

Fans can also collect digital ticket stubs and play three free fantasy-style games (called Playbook, One and Done, and Pick’Em), each with prizes ranging from digital packs to on-field experiences.

Doodles teases Froot Loops partnership

In what could be the most colorful web3 collaboration yet, Doodles has teased a new collaboration with Kellogg’s Froot Loops cereal in a short animated video shared on X. 

The clip shows Doodles characters interacting with falling pastel cereal and milk before flashing a “Froot Loops x Doodles” logo.

Few details have been released, but the posts confirm the crossover is “coming sooooon" and signaled a branded partnership that connects digital collectibles with a household-name breakfast brand.

Odious debuts solo exhibition in Brooklyn

On Sept. 10, digital artist Odious hosted a solo exhibition at Zepster Gallery in Brooklyn. 

The event presented artworks from his interactive book “Decisions, Upsets and Unknowns,” with pieces from each chapter displayed in the gallery. 

Visitors walked through the completed works, some of which were available for purchase, and saw new pieces revealed for the first time. The opening also included a live art activation during the evening.

Note: The mention of any token is for informational purposes only and is not intended as financial or investment advice.