The two companies are digital assets and blockchain firm, Galaxy Digital Holdings Ltd., and game software company, Animoca Brands Corporation Ltd. Galaxy minted a non-fungible token (NFT) of the violin, which is being used as collateral for Galaxy's multimillion-dollar loan to Animoca. The instrument itself is owned by Animoca co-founder and executive director, Yat Siu, and is housed in a secure location in Hong Kong.
(Photo : Kimberly White/Getty Images for TechCrunch) SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 20: Co-founder & Executive Chairman of Animoca Brands Yat Siu speaks onstage during TechCrunch Disrupt 2022 on October 20, 2022 in San Francisco, California. Siu bought the violin in 2023 at the auction house, Tarisio. Built by famed luthier Antonio Stradivarius in 1708, during his Golden Period, it was brought to Russia by the ambassador to Venice for Empress Elisabeth Petrovna. After she died, the instrument was inherited by Empress Catherine the Great, hence the violin's name, the Caterina Stradivarius. Besides the Russian royals, it was also owned by a number of violinists, a radiologist, and a coffee magnate, among others, until it was acquired by the industrialist Giorgio Feige, whose heirs sold the instrument. Siu then bought the instrument for $9 million,
Siu is a musician himself. He was born in Vienna to a conductor mother and a musician father, and attended Vienna's Music and Arts University, where he took up cello, flute, and piano. Although his career took him to the fields of technology and computing, Siu maintains close ties to music, sitting at the BAFTA board and serving as director of the Asian Youth Orchestra.
(Photo : Aleksey Antropov (1716–1795), public domain) Portrait of Catherine II of Russia (1729-1796)"As a technologist with a background in classical music, this is a very special moment for me," said Siu. "The 1708 Empress Caterina Stradivarius violin is the first instrument of such storied origin to undergo tokenization. I am thrilled to help trailblaze this new economic model for unique assets while at the same time preserving and sharing a precious piece of history."
Michael Novogratz, CEO and Founder of Galaxy, hopes the Stradivarius' tokenization will pave the way for similar ventures. "By starting with high-end assets like this violin, we're creating a process that will transform how a whole range of assets are managed, valued, and traded in a digital economy."
