The Fyre Fest Island Is Being Turned Into an NFT-Run Luxury Resort Great Exuma in the Bahamas has remained nearly entirely vacant since the infamous Fyre Fest disaster in 2017.
By Emily Rella
Opinions expressed by BIZ Experiences contributors are their own.
The Fyre Fest saga captured a national audience, spawning multiple documentaries and deep public interest in how a weekend trip advertised as the ultimate luxury getaway turned into a logistical nightmare.
Although the festival was supposed to take place on the island of Great Exuma in the Bahamas, it has sat dormant since 2017. But now, one company is looking to make use of the vacant spot after all.
AGIA International plans to sell 60 ultra-luxurious pavilions and villas in hopes of creating the most "exclusive enclave in the Caribbean."
The catch? Each unit will be sold as NFTs, available for purchase on the Ethereum blockchain. Owning the minted NFT for the corresponding property means that the buyer will have ownership of the physical property.
"When the public buys one of the 60 homes here via their crypto wallets, they're not only buying into a wealth of oceanfront experiences, they're also bringing economic vitality to the Bahamas," Erik Sanderson, Co-founder of AGIA International, said in a company release. "We are committed to growing the local economy and creating sustainable jobs."
Sanderson also said the AGIA Foundation will assist the island's educational and healthcare needs. Unlike the Fyre Fest which notably left trash on the island and disrupted the local infrastructure, the company says it will work to "build awareness around climate change by preserving the island's natural beauty and environmental resources, along with promoting the importance of agriculture throughout Great Exuma."
The resort is set to boast a super yacht marina as well as a village complete with restaurants, bars, and shopping. Each home will have its own pool and floating boat slip and will range in price from 1,000 to 6,500 square feet.
"This is the first time an entire real estate development has been exclusively for sale on the blockchain," Matthew Salnick, Chief Strategy Officer of Unchained Partners, AGIA International's blockchain developer explained. "There's never been a 100% tokenized resort-style community."
AGIA said that it would announce the official date of the mint later this month.
The announcement comes on the heels of another major milestone in NFT real estate.
Earlier this week, the first-ever NFT home was sold in South Carolina for around $175,000.
