A Dubai-made stunt car used in Fast & Furious 7, which was partly filmed in Abu Dhabi, is set to go on sale in the world's first non-fungible tokens (NFT) car auction which will see the buyer own both the physical and digital asset.
The Lykan HyperSport stunt car, the only one of 10 to survive the filming of Furious 7, was built by Dubai-based W Motors and featured in scenes with stars Vin Diesel and the late Paul Walker, crashing through some of the most famous landmarks in the UAE.
The car, which was built purely as a stunt vehicle and is not street legal, is being marketed by RubiX, a premium NFT marketplace, which will oversee the first physically-backed on-chain automotive NFT.
While the auction on May 11 has a reserve price, Géraldine Monchau, chief business officer of RubiX Network, which has offices in the US and Geneva, said the price is expected to exceed $1 million.
"The bids can be started at $100,000 but the expectation is to reach at least $1 million, but you never know with this crypto market, people are completely crazy. Last week, we had an auction where we sold a picture for $10 million," Ms Monchau told The National.
NFT stands for non-fungible token, a type of digital asset verified using blockchain technology. NFTs are increasingly popular in the art world because they make a file unique by allowing it to be permanently authenticated, regardless of copies.
In a record-setting auction at Christie's, an NFT by American artist Mike Winkelmann, known as Beeple, sold for nearly $70m in March, raising the profile of NFTs which some artists and collectors see as key to the future of the art market.
The W Motors Lykan HyperSport NFT will offer the buyer not only ownership of the actual car - which is stored in a glass box complete with scars and imperfections from filming - but also the digital asset, with the cost of shipping the item to the buyer’s home also thrown in.
The auction’s highest bidder will also receive a NFT package, including a collage of exclusive images of the Lykan HyperSport stunt car, a unique video and lifelike 3D renderings of the stunt car built on-chain on the RubiX blockchain with DID security.
"There were 10 cars built for the movie but this is the only one that survived, so this one is really a collector. It has a small motor inside but it is only for use on a private road, you cannot go on a public road because it would not be covered by insurance."
The car, currently on display at the W Motors Gallery in Dubai, will also come engraved with an irreplicable QR code (visual crypto) on its chassis to prove ownership.
Ralph Debbas, chief executive of W Motors, said it is the first company to implement NFT technology in the automotive arena, something he said adds “another impressive notch to our belt and signals a new way to sell luxury, investment-grade vehicles in a manner that guarantees provenance, security and ownership of the asset”.
Set up in 2012, W Motors claims to be the first manufacturer of high-performance luxury sports cars in the Middle East.
The production of its first hypercar, the Lykan HyperSport, catapulted the company to international stardom when it took centre stage in Universal Studios' Furious 7, with about 30 minutes of the movie filmed in Abu Dhabi in 2013.
The action includes one of the most daring stunts ever seen in the series, when a car crashes out of an upper-floor window in one of the Etihad Towers buildings, flying through the air and smashing through to land in another of the towers – and then repeating the jump to a third tower.
W Motors has also created the world’s most advanced security vehicle, the Ghiath Beast Patrol for Dubai Police, which features cutting- edge technologies.
“By partnering with RubiX for the launch of our first asset-backed NFT, we are paving the way for the future of NFTs within the automotive space, and this is only the beginning for us, Mr Debbas said.
The Lykan HyperSport NFT will be backed by RubiX’s proprietary patented technology, which incorporates the users’ Passwordless Digital Identity (DID) and unique QR Codes that require authentication for NFT access, preventing the loss or theft of keys.
The digital assets used for a RubiX NFT are stored on the RubiX blockchain, not on a centralised server, meaning ownership of the digital asset cannot be accessed by other parties and provides true ownership of the asset.
While RubiX is now accepting pre-bids for the W Motors Lykan HyperSport NFT, the live auction will take place on May 11.
More on NFTs
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NFTs are set to take over the art world
Art as NFTs: How does it work, how do you buy them and what's the catch?
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The bio
Favourite book: Peter Rabbit. I used to read it to my three children and still read it myself. If I am feeling down it brings back good memories.
Best thing about your job: Getting to help people. My mum always told me never to pass up an opportunity to do a good deed.
Best part of life in the UAE: The weather. The constant sunshine is amazing and there is always something to do, you have so many options when it comes to how to spend your day.
Favourite holiday destination: Malaysia. I went there for my honeymoon and ended up volunteering to teach local children for a few hours each day. It is such a special place and I plan to retire there one day.
MATCH INFO
Who: UAE v USA
What: first T20 international
When: Friday, 2pm
Where: ICC Academy in Dubai
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Rating: 3/5
Simran
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Three stars
ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- Margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars
- Energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- Infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes
- Many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts
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Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
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- Eighth place in Premier League in 2015/16
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Key figures in the life of the fort
Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.
Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.
Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae
