NFTs in M’sia this week: Our local KFC is bringing the food chain to the blockchain

Last week, we saw a local artist who came up with an NFT Raya song, and MyEG promoting responsible car ownership and NFTs at a go.

This week, we’ve got fast food and the Illuminati to talk about. 

From food chain to blockchain

We’ve previously covered the story of MyeongDong Topokki setting up an NFT restaurant in Genting Highlands. Now, another fast food chain in Malaysia is jumping on the bandwagon.

KFC Malaysia released 11 NFTs, a nod to the brand’s 11 herbs and spices secret blend. Named Original KFC Moments, the collection is made up of artworks by local artists including Wilson Ng, Book of Lai, and Arif Rafhan Othman.

The NFT reveal was part of its latest “Finger Lickin’ Good” campaign. It aims to reignite the shared love for Finger Lickin’ Good KFC moments, which the brand believes resonates with all Malaysians. 

Eight of the artworks were made available on OpenSea on May 10, while three of the remaining artworks were up for grabs via a contest on KFC Malaysia’s Instagram page. 

In line with the marketing campaign, to win a KFC NFT, users could write in a comment about their personal heartfelt moments featuring KFC. 

Looking at the OpenSea page, it appears that some of the NFTs, particularly the ones reserved for the giveaway, have already been transacted multiple times. The lowest bid is now going for 0.1 WETH (about RM841 at the time of writing), while the highest is currently 0.9 WETH (about RM7,575).

Did you know: WETH is essentially a “wrapped” ETH token. For cryptocurrencies, a “wrapped” token is nothing but an empty vessel that contains the original asset. The process of wrapping helps use a non-native asset on any blockchain.

NFT holders will receive a monthly RM20 KFC e-voucher for delivery orders made on the brand’s app or website.

Chief Marketing Officer Chan May Ling told Advertising + Marketing Malaysia that KFC Malaysia strives to be at forefront of the latest in technology and innovation. 

According to her, the brand is original, unique, distinct, and irreplaceable, like NFTs. Thus, venturing into the world of non-replicable digital assets is one way to further express KFC’s brand identity.

NFT art meets streetwear… and the Illuminati?

Recently, a local NFT project had Instagram users speculating it was working with the Illuminati. Though the release of this project happened a few months ago, we found it worth featuring after chancing upon the story of its shortcomings and successes, posted by the NFT project’s creator on Twitter.

Stoned, State of Mind (SSOM) was a collaborative NFT project between Stoned & Co, a streetwear brand located in Subang Jaya’s SS15, and Frame of Mind, an NFT artist on Pentas.io. 

The collab released 11 NFTs in its SSOM Genesis collection, each on sale for 25 BNB (RM27,224.40 at the time of writing), which were sold out a month later.

To create attention for its launch event, SSOM was featured on a Lot 10 billboard around mid-February 2022. It featured motifs of weed, psychedelic patterns and colours, and a single eyeball that, of course, people pointed out as being the symbol of the Illuminati.

In spite of the accusations, SSOM drew enough attention at its launch event that Frame of Mind claimed attendance was full. It even saw event participants including members from the Pentas.io community, and 8sian (a known name in the world where NFTs meet fashion).

Frame of Mind described this project as a personal milestone for being their first NFT project to collaborate with a Malaysian fashion brand. 

Moving forward, we’re definitely anticipating more collaborations of this kind as local brands increasingly catch on to how NFTs can be their new marketing strategy, as well as a potential revenue stream.

Featured Image Credit: KFC Malaysia / Frame of Mind