March 25, 2022
By Murtuza Merchant
Mumbai, Mar 25 – International luxury jewelry house Mouawad today announced its partnership with Icecap, a world leader in creating NFTs for investment-grade diamonds to offer fractionalized ownership of the Mouawad-created Miss Universe crown via non-fungible tokens.
The Miss Universe Power of Unity Crown, which was originally worn by 2019 Miss Universe winner Zozibini Tunzi of South Africa, and then by 2020 Miss Universe Andrea Meza of Mexico, is currently worn by 2021 Miss Universe Harnaaz Sandhu.
For the first time ever, the unique and storied icon will be offered to fans of the pageant via NFT technology, who have a chance to become part of Miss Universe history themselves.
“As our world moves increasingly towards digitalization, things become possible that would have been difficult to grasp less than a generation ago,” commented Jacques Voorhees, Icecap’s founder, and CEO. “NFTs provide not merely immutable proof of ownership of an object, but they can also allow the holder to unlock digital content associated with that object—in this case about the pageant, the contestants, the contestant stories, and the crown itself.”
“Miss Universe is one of the most glamorous and popular competitions in the world today,” noted Pascal Mouawad, co-guardian of the prominent jewelry house headquartered in Dubai. “It is inspiring to have an event that extends the human ideals of strength, unity, intelligence, and perseverance. The crown itself represents the powerful message of these values and is one of the most extraordinary pieces of jewelry in the world.”
When and if the Power of Unity crown is ever retired, it will either be placed in a museum and the tokens will be allowed to trade indefinitely, or the token owners can vote to sell the crown, at auction.
“As we’ll be using the technology of fractionalized NFTs for this project,” explained Voorhees, “the smart contract underlying the tokens will allow a majority to essentially ‘vote’ on what will happen to the crown if it is ever retired from the pageant. If the crown is sold the proceeds will flow automatically to the NFT holders at that time.”
“We’re thrilled fans will get the chance to own a piece of our history,” said Paula M. Shugart, Miss Universe Organization President. “The Miss Universe Organization is proud to partner with Icecap and Mouawad for this exciting opportunity and a new way to engage with fans and reach a greater audience.”
The fractionalized ownership of the crown will be based on Ethereum blockchain non-fungible tokens, which—via “smart contract” technology—contain their own terms, conditions, and trading components. The fractionalized NFTs are expected to be issued in the second half of 2022, on select crypto-trading platforms, with the initial value set by an expert appraiser. Once floated, the tokens’ value will then be determined by supply and demand.
“We’re very pleased the Miss Universe Power of Unity Crown tokenization project is being based out of Dubai,” noted Dr. Marwan Alroui, chief executive of the Dubai Blockchain Center, and one of the most influential people in the blockchain industry. “Dubai is already a blockchain hub and has also become one of the world’s primary diamond trading centers. This connection with the Miss Universe competition we expect will help focus attention on Dubai’s increasing role in these industries.”
About the author
Murtuza Merchant is a senior journalist and an avid follower of blockchain and cryptocurrencies.
