Paper ApeWhat is Shōyu? Sushi's NFT Marketplace
Shōyu is an NFT marketplace and will soon be the newest product in the Sushi ecosystem. Combining DeFi and art, Shōyu's goal is to become a platform that helps artists and creators push the NFT space forward. The original proposal was made by LevX on July 7th, 2021 and can be found here.
Planned launch: October 2021
Key Features
Multi-chain compatible
Ethereum & Polygon support at launch
Revenue share for staking $SUSHI tokens
2.5% of every trade goes to xSUSHI holders
Immersive mode - like being in a museum rather than scrolling a chronological grid of assets
Compatible with 2D, 3D, and AR assets
Purchases can be made with any cryptocurrency
Support for fractional NFTs
Ability to distribute fees from NFT sales to multiple wallets. Percentages can also be adjusted on a wallet-by-wallet basis.
No ETH required to mint or sell NFTs
Charity funds will be set up for artists to donate royalties to if they choose
NFT tagging & search features
Stats & analytics dashboard
One of my favorite features about Shōyu is the ability to accept payment in any cryptocurrency available on the Sushi platform. This is a huge difference from any other NFT marketplace because typically sellers are limited to accepting payment in ETH, USDC, or DAI.
Shōyu is focusing on the social side of NFT collecting which I find extremely important in any platform that wants to gain a sustainable audience. The ability to follow and direct message people are 2 key features that Shōyu has implemented which set itself apart from OpenSea.
To further expand on Shōyu's social focus, in a recent demo they mentioned wanting to become the "TikTok" of NFTs. This didn't make much sense to me when I first heard it. At first I thought it was just a buzzword but then I realized they're actually talking about the discoverability of other NFTs. My guess is that they'll have some sort of system like Lazy.com has with their "show similar" or "show opposites" buttons.
Galleries
There will be 3 gallery options on Shōyu:
Virtual metaverse
Standard 2D gallery (like OpenSea)
Immersive mode
Below is a teaser of the metaverse gallery.
Shoyu vs. OpenSea
There's a few key differences between OpenSea and it's newest rival but they also share a few commonalities. The table below highlights the most important similarities & differences:
OpenSea | Shōyu |
|---|---|
Ethereum & Polygon compatible | Ethereum & Polygon compatible |
2.5% marketplace fee - Paid to OpenSea | 2.5% marketplace fee - Paid to xSUSHI holders |
Max 40MB per asset | Max 500 MB per asset (high res) |
2D & 3D assets | 2D, 3D, and AR assets |
2D interface | 2D, 3D, & immersive interface |
ETH, USDC, DAI payments | Any cryptocurrency on SushiSwap can be used as payment |
No following or messaging | Follow & messaging features |
The most notable difference from this comparison is the parties who benefit from platform fees. OpenSea's centralized approach benefits their team while all of Shōyu's fees get distributed to xSUSHI holders. Based on what Sushiswap did to Uniswap last year with the launch of their exchange, I'm closely watching to see if history repeats itself. If it does, the Sushi ecosystem will take a decent portion of OpenSea's market share.
How can I invest?
Buying and staking $SUSHI will grant you a portion of the profits from the Shōyu marketplace in addition to profits from the entire Sushi platform. 2.5% of every sale on Shōyu will be distributed to xSUSHI holders.
Buy $SUSHI -> Stake $SUSHI here -> Receive xSUSHI
What is xSUSHI?
xSUSHI is a token given to people who stake SUSHI tokens. As soon as you stake $SUSHI, the platform gives you a proportional amount of xSUSHI tokens in return. You can deposit the xSUSHI tokens back into SushiSwap to get back your original $SUSHI deposit + the additional interest you've earned from staking it.
In addition to earning fees, xSUSHI also gives you voting rights on the Sushi platform. There's even more benefits to go along with it but I'll save that for a more detailed analysis of the Sushi ecosystem at a later time.