A multi-fund attempt to purchase a rare copy of the 1787 US Constitution at auction is believed to have raised more than $40 million (£29.6 million) in cryptocurrency donations. Constitution DAO said it planned to “put the constitution in the hands of the people.”
Auction house Sotheby’s estimates the selling price at the auction held on January 1. However, it is not clear how the property will be designed if prosperous. Published in 1787, 13 known surviving copies of the 500 editions were printed initially. Ater the text was approved in Philadelphia, the Pennsylvania Constitutional Convention.
Sotheby’s said that the copy for sale is one of only two not held in the institution’s collection. The group wants to make the document publicly available.
DAO means “decentralized autonomous organization.”
The idea is to allow people to come together to make purchases and share property, with their transactions. And operating rules recorded on the blockchain, the same underlying technology as cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum.
ConstitutionDAO started just a week before the auction and asked for money to buy constitutional documents on Ethereum. The group announced on their news that they were “raising money to win this auction.”
The website initially announced to employees that they were “purchasing a portion of the property and management. You will have a share of the Constitution, depending on how much you contribute”.
It has since been amended so that those who contribute do not get a share of the ownership of the constitution.
The question is, “Do I get ownership of the Constitution in exchange for my donation?” the answer is, “No, you get management tokens, not partial ownership.” “Management markers. He says on the website, can “advise” “where the constitution should be displayed, how the mission and values of the DAO Constitution should be presented.”
According to an FAQ document posted by a critical project contributor on the group’s Discord social media channels. After the first purchase, the community can restructure ownership” in line with the group’s mission and values.
The website says there will be a “refund” if the auction fails. However, the largely unregulated world of cryptocurrencies carries a lot of risks. Frequently asked questions warn of possible hacker attacks or money theft, although they say: “Due to a lack of time. We make everything as secure and error-free as possible.”
The cryptocurrency funds used for the purchase are in a portfolio currently controlled by a significant 13 participants, with nine required to approve transactions. DAOs have a checkered history. For example, in 2016, The DAO, a venture capital organization. Raised $150 million only to see $50 million disappear in a hack due to a bug in the code used.
The DAO’s legal status is also unclear, experts say.
Sotheby’s told the: “Because DAO is not a legally recognized entity in most jurisdictions. Sotheby’s requires DAO to take certain legal steps to ensure that it can participate in our tenders at this point. As a result of the project, an American limited company was formed to participate.