Coins.ph CEO, YGG COO Lead Acquisition of 0n1 Force NFT Project
OFR plans to invest heavily in the 0N1 Force franchise and create a community board to oversee the project.
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Additional reporting from Michael Mislos
- Blockchain investment firm OFR led a buyout of 0N1 Force, a collection of 7,777 anime-style NFTs.
- YGG COO Colin Goltra and Coins.ph CEO Wei Zhou were among the investors.
- OFR plans to invest heavily in the 0N1 Force franchise and create a community board to oversee the project, which aims to bring comic book storytelling to the blockchain.
- In 2022, Goltra wrote about the upcoming emergence of an investment fund that looks into “old overlooked/underperforming NFT project with great IP/community/art.”
The blue chip non-fungible token (NFT) collection 0N1 Force was recently purchased through a community buyout led by blockchain investment firm Old Fashion Research (OFR). According to them, the initiative is an attempt for the consolidation of valuable IP in the NFT market as projects shift into a higher gear. The news was first reported by international website The Block.
Old Fashion Research (OFR)
The investors for this buyout include Yield Guild Games (YGG) Chief Operating Officer (COO) Colin Goltra and Binance former Chief Finance Officer (CFO) and current Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Coins.ph Wei Zhou.
OFR was founded in 2021 by former Binance VP of M&A Ling Zhang and Binance former head of corporate development Wayne Fu. Zhou is also part of OFR as a Strategic Partner.
It should be noted that Goltra is also a Binance alum, heading its Southeast Asia team before moving to YGG. Goltra was also previous head of cryptocurrency at Coins.ph, where Zhou is now CEO.
Plans for 0n1 Force
Accordingly, OFR is set to create a community board to oversee the 0N1 Force project. The leaders include OFR Strategic Advisers Finn and Zhang, Zhou, and the new Chief Strategy Officer William Tong. Goltra will also be part of the board as a senior adviser and investor.
As per the OFR, the plan to “deploy significant funds into the growing 0N1 Force franchise, with a view to establishing it as a leading metaverse-native IP.”
Current Management Situation
Moreover, noting that founders of 0N1 Force already left the venture, the current project leader Henry Finn (Starlordy) will take over as the CEO of the group and existing community moderators will also be retained, according to the acquisition agreement.
“It is my great pleasure and honor to continue serving the 0N1 Force community under new ownership that has my complete faith and a very special thank you to the board members who were all instrumental in supporting this transition…The new ownership group is filled with passionate supporters of art and storytelling, and their sincere energy has already given new life to this storied brand. Their vision and resources will give us the strong foundation needed to help 0N1 Force reach its fullest potential alongside any blue chip in the market,” Finn stated.
On the other hand, Ling Zhang, Managing Partner of Old Fashion Research, shared how OFR appreciates “0N1 Force’s creative narratives and its vision in building the comic-focused 0N1 Vers.”
“0N1 Force has a vibrant and supportive community under Starlordy’s leadership, and we are excited to join the force to the core community to build a promising 0N1 Verse,” she added.
Zhou also expressed optimism with the acquisition.
“I love 0n1 Force because of its unique community-driven storytelling narrative. We will build on this early success to grow the Enclave into the mothership of world-class IPs. “ he shared.
Opportunities in Underperforming Projects with Great IP
In 2022, Goltra wrote an investment thesis about a new kind of asset management fund that look at old overlooked projects with great IP:
“The operators of such a fund would be a totally new breed of crypto investor, simultaneously plugged into tech/finance/crypto, but also to Art, Internet culture, community, crowd hysteria, IP, media, and a bunch of other hybrid disciplines,” Goltra added.
The same can be said of Zhou’s acquisition of Coins.ph. “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” he told BitPinas last year when asked about his acquisition of the brand from Indonesian giant Go-Jek. Under Zhou, Coins has added 20 more cryptocurrencies in the platform, added a Game Center inside the app, and secured partnerships from organizations like Miss Universe Philippines.
What is 0N1 Force?
0n1 Force is a collection of 7,777 generative side-profile characters with over 100 hand-drawn features; first minted in August 2021–one of the first anime NFT collections to launch. Currently, 0N1 Force accumulated a total volume of 60,238 ETH in the NFT Marketplace OpenSea with a floor price of 1.928 ETH at the time this article was written.
0N1 Force is a community-driven project that brings a rich comic book storytelling experience to the blockchain.
This article is published on BitPinas: Coins.ph Wei Zhou and Binance Goltra Buy 0n1Force
Disclaimer: BitPinas articles and its external content are not financial advice. The team serves to deliver independent, unbiased news to provide information for Philippine-crypto and beyond.
