Last week, the popular Tezos-based non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace Hic et Nunc briefly shuttered after its founder Rafael Lima announced its discontinuation. Within days, the community rallied around a clone site, Hicetnunc.art, and started transitioning the project into a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO).
Founder Steps Back, Community Steps In
On November 14, Bitcoin.com News reported that Hic et Nunc, which had risen into the top twenty NFT marketplaces by sales volume, had shut down. Founder Rafael Lima tweeted from “@hicetnunc2000” that Hicetnunc.xyz was “discontinued,” leaving users confused and speculating about the future. But the Tezos community quickly acted, banding together around a mirror of the original marketplace called Hicetnunc.art.
Statements provided to Bitcoin.com News confirm that Lima has decided to step back and leave the project in the hands of the community. The original website remains unavailable and “still remains in the hands of the founder and developer.” Meanwhile, Tezos infrastructure provider Teztools has assumed the role of “caretaker” for the Hic et Nunc smart contract until a fully functional DAO is in place.
Fees Slashed, Domain Transferred
In the transition process, Lima lowered the platform’s fee to 1%, the lowest level the smart contract permits. The hicetnunc-community Twitter account stated: “Hic et Nunc founder Rafael Lima has been in communication with some of the admin team and reduced the existing HEN contract fee to 1%. In turn, DNS.xyz have transferred the ownership of the mirror Hicetnunc.art to the community care of Teztools.”
Generative artist and creative coder Matt DesLauriers published a blog post on November 13 titled “Hicetnunc and the Merits of Web3.” He explained that despite the original website shutting down, “its users and their content are able to transition seamlessly to alternative platforms and online spaces, because the website was merely acting as a thin interface atop the decentralized blockchain contracts and peer-to-peer file hosting.”
Toward a DAO-Governed Future
Teztools will not only act as smart contract custodian but also assist the Hic et Nunc community in establishing a DAO governance framework. This means future decisions regarding fee allocation, feature upgrades, and content moderation will be made by token holders through voting. The move exemplifies the Web3 ethos: even when a founder departs, a decentralized community can sustain the project through resilient infrastructure.
Hic et Nunc was one of the most popular NFT marketplaces on Tezos, ranking among the top 20 by sales volume. Its rapid revival and transition to DAO governance sets a precedent for other projects reliant on a single founder, demonstrating the power of community-driven resilience in the crypto space.