Miss Universe Malaysia unveils NFT collection, plans to use them as a voting mechanism

During a joint press conference on May 19 that Vulcan Post attended, NFT Pangolin and Miss Universe Malaysia Organization (MUMO) introduced their collaborative series of NFTs, made in the likeness of the 15 Miss Universe Malaysia finalists.

Held in Vogue Lounge, Datin Elaine Daly, MUMO’s National Director, was present alongside Mohamad Johan Nasir, Business Development Director (SEA) of NFT Pangolin.

12 out of the 15 final contestants were also in attendance, with one of them—Cheam Wei Yeng (Lesley)—as the emcee. Francisca Luhong, the current Miss Universe Malaysia, was also in the audience.

Three categories of NFTs are set to launch in this collaboration between MUMO and NFT Pangolin. Specifically:

The Universe Collection NFTs were showcased during the event by the respective contestants they were representing. These 15 NFTs are essentially portraits of the ladies in “celestial designs”. There will be 10K NFTs of each design in supply. Each collection will have a price range of 1-2 ZTX, the currency used on Zetrix, which is the blockchain that’s powering the minting of NFTs on NFT Pangolin. This value amounts to roughly RM20 at the time of writing.

The Competition Collection is a limited series of video NFTs that are auction-only. Only one video of each contestant will be in circulation. Previews of these video NFTs were briefly showcased at the event.

The 8SIAN collection will be an even more exclusive collection reserved for the final winner of Miss Universe Malaysia.

8SIAN is a local NFT project that has made the news several times now, and it’s founded by Nicole Yap, a notable name for championing the inclusivity and involvement of more women in the NFT scene. The team will be designing the limited-edition collection after the new Queen is crowned.

Utility of the NFTs

Of course, these NFTs aren’t just for show. They will also play a part in the voting system for Miss Universe Malaysia. The popularity of the Universe Collection NFTs ties into the Pageant’s final competition.

According to the press release, “The finalists will automatically earn additional voting points depending on the popularity of their NFTs and will obtain the “wildcard” to bypass the elimination round.”

During the conference, Johan said each sale will amount to 5 votes.

The same goes for the Competition Collection, but this time, the stakes are higher. As these NFTs are auction-only, higher bids will amount to higher points.

While Johan said that there is no finalised number for how the bids will translate into votes, he anticipates the vote count to be in the triple digits, which he explained is very high.  

“It could actually shake up the ranking of the girls,” Johan said. “Somebody could be a back runner, but because somebody has purchased their NFTs, they could actually jump up to be in the top five or top four.”

Using NFTs as a voting mechanism aligns with NFT Pangolin’s vision of creating utility out of NFTs, which Johan emphasised on during the conference.

But other than earning votes, the contestants are actually earning financially from the NFT sales too. While the organisers did not disclose what exact percentage the contestants will earn, Johan shared that this system gives the contestants an incentive to leverage their influences.

He also mentioned that the proceeds could potentially go to charities as well.  

NFTs as the future

Since the NFTs will be sold on NFT Pangolin, the NFTs will be minted on the Zetrix blockchain and have to be bought with ZTX. At the time of writing, the NFTs have not been fully launched on the platform yet (only one NFT of contestant Asha is listed).

MUMO’s NFT series comes after its one-year hiatus due to the pandemic. Dato Elaine said in her speech that she doesn’t see these NFTs as simply for monetary gain, but to publicly engage viewers as well.

“We are putting ourselves on the global map, to make sure we are seen and we are heard,” Dato Elaine said during the Q&A session. “We want to be game-changers in society.”

Vulcan Post will be sharing our experience of witnessing the unveiling of MUMO NFTs soon, so stay tuned for that.

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Featured Image Credit: Vulcan Post