ConstitutionDAO were outbid by Ken Griffin, a hedge fund billionaire who has previously described the excitement surrounding digital assets as a "jihadist call."
New details are continuing to emerge about a crypto group's failed attempt to get their hands on a rare copy of the U.S. Constitution.
We now know they were outbid by Ken Griffin, a hedge fund billionaire who has previously described the excitement surrounding digital assets as a "jihadist call."
Griffin is the founder and CEO of Citadel, which bailed out the hedge funds that hemorrhaged money after shorting GameStop stock earlier this year during the height of the r/WallStreetBets craze.
After winning the auction, he said in a statement:
"The U.S. Constitution is a sacred document that enshrines the rights of every American and all those who aspire to be. That is why I intend to ensure that this copy of our Constitution will be available for all Americans and visitors to view and appreciate in our museums and other public spaces."
There's little doubt that, as well as owning this historic document, Griffin might have been tempted to deal a blow to the crypto investors he's so skeptical about.
Tough Questions
It seems that, ultimately, ConstitutionDAO's audacious bid was undone by one of blockchain's most distinctive benefits: transparency.
From the very beginning, it was easy to see how much the decentralized autonomous organization had raised from its 17,000 donors — and easy to determine a winning bid that would price them out.
Irrespective of who the owner is, it's a stunning outcome for the seller.
This particular copy of the U.S. Constitution is one of 13 believed to be in existence, and it was expected to fetch between $15 million and $20 million during the Sotheby's auction on Thursday night.
The eventual selling price of $43.2 million will be music to the ears of the philanthropist Dorothy Tapper. Her husband, the late S. Howard Goldman, had bought the print for $165,000 all the way back in 1988.
Although those who participated in ConstitutionDAO are receiving a refund, the ETH they'll get back will be heavily eroded by gas fees.
A flurry of memes about the outcome have been spreading like wildfire on Crypto Twitter. Vowing to dust themselves off, ConstitutionDAO said on Sunday night:
"The future is bright, and we're not done here and we're committed to moving forward carefully, thoughtfully, and correctly."
