On 17th June 2023, Saturday witnessed a dramatic event in the NFT realm. A $95,000 Ethereum-based NFT, CryptoPunk #8611, was purchased and later burned, transforming it into an Ordinals inscription, courtesy of a group of Bitcoin enthusiasts known as Bitcoin Bandits. The destruction of the CryptoPunk NFT was not mere amusement, but a strategic move.
Wolf Capital Developer Nathan Stein led this venture on Twitter, alongside the Bitcoin Bandits, sparking wild enthusiasm among the community. About 150 individuals rallied behind this idea, resulting in the NFT’s eternal digital lockup in a wallet beyond control, a wallet already housing $21 million worth of Ethereum.
Ordinals, a recent Bitcoin protocol, facilitates creating NFT-like assets on Bitcoin by inscribing data onto individual satoshis. This nascent technology paved the way for the symbolic shift of the NFT from its Ethereum chain to Bitcoin, a process termed ‘teleburning.’
However, CryptoPunk #8611’s fiery fate wasn’t the first of its kind. Back in February, a $169,000 NFT from BAYC collection met a similar destiny under Jason Williams’ hand. Unlike Williams’ entertainment-driven approach, the Bitcoin Bandits had a grander vision for CryptoPunk #8611.
Their endgame aims to generate Ordinals inscriptions that represent fragments of ownership in the original, now-burnt NFT. These inscriptions are to be created after CryptoPunk #8611’s duplicate is ceremonially dispatched to a wallet owned by Bitcoin’s pseudonymous creator, Satoshi Nakamoto. This move by the Bandits suggests their belief that “CryptoPunks deserve better than ETH,” marking a turning point in the world of NFTs.
