Miami teams up with TIME, Mastercard and Salesforce to launch NFTs

Quick take:

• TIME USA will guide Miami’s NFT strategy and execute the project.
• Mastercard will offer Miami NFT holders access to special events and exclusive benefits.
• Salesforce will handle the NFT minting and primary sales process.

Miami is dropping NFTs, the city’s mayor, Francis X. Suarez, revealed Thursday. The City of Miami has teamed up with TIME US, Mastercard and Salesforce to launch the NFTs later this year.

The NFT initiative is designed to drive revenue to local businesses and nonprofits through exclusive rewards offers. Through the four-way collaboration, the City of Miami will release a collection of 5,000 Ethereum NFTs designed by 56 local Miami artists, representing the city’s 56 square kilometer area.

“I am thrilled to partner with TIME, Mastercard and Salesforce on this initiative. The City of Miami has been at the forefront of the web3 revolution and we will continue to use these new technologies to support our existing businesses while attracting new , raise capital and provide experiences for our residents and those who visit this great city, while also using this new approach to support local artists and charities,” said Mayor Francis X. Suarez.

Mastercard will offer holders of Miami NFTs access to Mastercard’s Priceless Miami program, which includes events at local Miami restaurants and curated private tours of Miami cultural institutions and other memorable activities.

TIME, which has been active in the web3 space for the past year, will be responsible for guiding the strategy, developing the creative and launching the initiative.

“This initiative will provide a unique opportunity for the City of Miami to build deeper connections with residents and visitors alike. As we’ve developed TIME into the web3 space over the past year and a half, we’ve uncovered new ways to engage consumers and create exciting new revenue streams for our industry,” says Keith A. Grossman, president of TIME, who also sits on Salesforce’s advisory board.

“We are thrilled to leverage our learning and expertise to build this program for the great city of Miami, which has already established itself as a leader in web3 innovation, and make our first move in a new venture for TIME to bring other brands and organizations successfully and authentically into web3.”

Salesforce will handle the minting and sale of NFTs through NFT Cloud, a new product – currently in closed pilot – that allows brands to connect the physical and digital worlds via non-fungible tokens.

Miami has been making waves in the Web3 space, with the launch of MiamiCoin last August, and the first Miami NFT Week in April, fueled by Miami Mayor Francis Suarez’s popularity among venture capitalists, startups and tech companies.

The project will start in December this year after Ethereum moves from Proof of Work to Proof of Stake, which will reduce the initiative’s carbon footprint by an estimated 99% or more. Application details for interested artists and more information about the NFT release will be announced in the coming months.

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