Googling: "How to NFT art heist"

Last Week's Market Moves

Hey Snackers,

The adult-world equivalent of a professor pushing back the big essay due date: the IRS extending the tax filing deadline (FYI: May 17th).

After hitting fresh highs last Monday, stocks dipped for the week as interest rate worries continued and jobless claims unexpectedly jumped. Back in DC, President Biden is urging Congress to pass hate crime legislation in response to rising violence against Asian Americans.

On the pod: The NFL just inked a $113B deal... which could kill the cable bundle. More on our 15-minute daily pod.

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FUNG

Cryptic collectables: NFTs are having a pre-mainstream, mainstream moment

Can't funge this... What do Jack Dorsey's first tweet, Nyan Cat meme, and a viral skateboarding TikTok have in common? They're all NFTs, aka: non-fungible tokens. NFTs are like one-of-a-kind trading cards (but digital) — instead of living in a glass case, they live on a crypto blockchain. But unlike bitcoin and other currencies, they can't be exchanged like-for-like. Hence, "non-fungible." You can trade $1 for $1, but you can't trade Dorsey's first tweet for Dorsey's first tweet (you can sell it for $2.5M, though).

Nyan Cat is a crypto star...so are Logan Paul Pokémon cards (really). NFTs can be tied to any digital asset, from songs to video clips. And they’ve been tied to physical objects, too (see: Nike CryptoKicks). While they've been around for years, NFTs have blown up recently — especially in the art world.

• $69.3M: How much an NFT jpeg by Beeple sold for at a Christie's auction earlier this month. Now he's one of the three most valuable living artists.
• $6M: How much musician Grimes got for 10 NFTs of digital art.

Fungible flex factor... NFTs certify your ownership of the original asset... even though everyone can see and download the same Beeple jpeg for $0. Also: the artist can retain all usage rights to the work. While buyers don't get paid from views, they do get the knowledge that somewhere in the blockchain their name is written in permanent crypto Sharpie on an asset. And if the hype continues, they might be able to sell their NFT at a profit (but it could lose value, too).

THE TAKEAWAY

NFTs could revolutionize the creator economy... if they become more than a fad. There are already marketplaces that allow people to buy and sell NFTs, including Nifty Gateway and OpenSea (which just raised $23M in funding). NFT creators can even enable a feature that gets them paid each time their work changes hands. Now, smaller artists are NFT-i-fying their work. And people are willing to shell out $$$ to claim ownership and support their fave creators: the NFT market quadrupled to $250M in 2020, and has soared this year. If they stick, NFTs could be a new avenue for creators to monetize their work.

HIGHS

Who's up...

Take me to your lidar... Luminar makes lidar tech that lets self-driving cars "see" their surroundings. By shining lasers at objects, Luminar's tech can prevent autonomous whips from hitting light poles. Luminar stock jumped 17% on Friday, after it delivered a reassuring business update — and notched a key partnership with one of China's largest carmakers: SAIC Motor plans to use Luminar's lidar sensors in its new line of cars. Luminar also recently sealed a deal to provide tech for Volvo's self-driving subsidiary.

Wine valise FTW... Williams-Sonoma probably invented the wedding registry. But despite all the canceled 2020 ceremonies, the home goods legend had its best year of sales ever — and the stock soared 29% for the week. All of WS' brands (Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn, and West Elm) saw double-digit growth last year, and total sales climbed 26% from 2019. WS was a double coronaconomy winner, benefiting from the House Hype and a digital-first strategy: 70% of its sales were online.

LOWS

...and who's down

Banking on it... Bank stocks including Chase, Citi, and Wells Fargo dipped on Friday after the Fed declined to extend a pandemic-era exemption that lowered their capital requirements. This means banks could have to keep more $$$ in their coffers to meet requirements each night. That could lower the amount of cash banks have available to lend out. Generally, the less available something is, the pricier it becomes — so the cost of borrowing cash could rise (read: higher interest rates on loans). Banks had been lobbying for an extension.

Black Cab vs. Uber Black.. Last month, Uber lost a major labor battle in the UK (one of its largest markets). Last week, Uber made it official by reclassifying its 70K UK drivers as "workers." The less gig-y new employment status includes vacation pay, pensions, and a minimum wage. These fresh benefits could be pricey for Uber, but they're not as expansive as they sound. Still, they set a precedent that could inspire more labor activists in other countries to push for change. That's likely why Uber stock dipped 5% for the week.

What else we're Snackin'

• Learn: Spring officially started on Saturday — here's what makes seasons happen.
• Do: Why we procrastinate on the smallest tasks, but waste time worrying about them.
• Work: 22 side gigs that could make you richer than a full-time job.
• Read: How to survive encounters with dangerous animals (you never know).
• Watch: A mesmerizing 30-day time lapse of a cargo ship’s voyage from the Red Sea.
• Live: An ode to low expectations — happiness lies in the mundane.

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The Snacks Daily Podcast

Hungry for more on the NFT craze?

We whipped up a non-fungible episode on our snackable 15-minute-pod.

Snack Fact Of the Day

Mothers are the sole or primary breadwinner in ~40% of American households with children

This Week

• Monday: World Water Day
• Tuesday: Earnings expected from Adobe and GameStop. Treasury Secretary Yellen and Fed Chair Powell testify to the House Financial Services Committee on their pandemic response.
• Wednesday: Equal Pay Day. Earnings expected from General Mills, KB Home, and Tencent
• Thursday: Weekly jobless claims. Earnings expected from Darden Restaurants
• Friday: Consumer sentiment index

Authors of this Snacks own shares of: Uber and JPMorgan Chase

ID: 1234567

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