Fanatics chairman Michael Rubin, cryptocurrency investor Michael Novogratz and digital media entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk have partnered to create Candy Digital, a company that will specialize in virtual collectibles and other NFTs.
Financial specifics of the partnership were not provided. Fanatics will be Candy’s majority shareholder, with Novogratz’s Galaxy Digital and Vaynerchuk as equity partners.
The platform launched Tuesday with Major League Baseball as its first partner, giving it exclusive rights to digital collectibles released by the league or its 30 teams.
Candy and Major League Baseball’s first release will be a 1-of-1 NFT of Lou Gehrig’s “Luckiest Man” speech that he delivered on July 4, 1939, after being diagnosed with ALS. This NFT will commemorate the league’s first official Lou Gehrig Day taking place tomorrow, June 2, to raise awareness and funds to fight ALS, which is also called Lou Gehrig’s Disease.
Candy anticipates the announcement of additional partners and products in the coming weeks.
Rubin, executive chairman of Fanatics and co-chair of Candy Digital said, “At its core, Candy is about allowing everyone to own a piece of their passion, whether that be sports or gaming, fashion or art, music or pop culture, the goal is to broaden the fanbase of digital collectibles. Both Candy and our pioneering partner Major League Baseball live at the intersection of passion, community, innovation, and digital transformation—the sweet spot.”
Mike Novogratz, founder and CEO of Galaxy Digital and co-chair of Candy Digital said, “NFTs are fundamentally changing how we think about owning cultural artifacts. We’re in the very early stages of this transformation and Candy’s focus on creativity, community and authenticity will all play a key role in its success in defining this new market.”
Logo courtesy Candy Digital
