Long time no see, keepsakes.! I am so immersed in VTubers that I gave this space the least priority. It’s not too late to write here, so I have a story to share with everyone. Earlier today, I was at OtaCute to witness the Launch Party of its Event DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization).
I am still somehow confused as to what a DAO means even after reading this Investopedia article and how it applies to OtaCute’s current format, but I did realize that the whole process of organizing the launch party was left to those who want to participate in it.
Nevertheless, all I had in mind is this: At last, I can use the Cosplay Token that I have in my crypto wallet. Cosplay Token was developed by CureCos initially to support the cosplay economy—which according to Cure is valued at 45 billion US dollars.
When Cosplay Token was revealed in 2018, I was not OK with cryptocurrency. Especially at that time, rug pulls were the big news, giving me the impression that cryptocurrency is used as a scam. That bitter aftertaste is still present today, especially with how volatile major cryptocurrencies are—not to mention, the then well-endorsed FTX exchange was gone in an instant.
Despite this, major fintech services such as Maya and GCash are opening the doors for the common folk to use spare change to play with volatile cryptocurrencies. CONQuest Festival last year distributed its limited-edition NFT to those interested at no cost. Philippine TOYCON last year has partnered with a token service for a utility token.
It’s better for me to say that I am slowly opening up to these technologies rather than continue dissing them when I have such items. To me, as long as it’s at little to no cost, and it respects original content (unlike NFTs which can be created using AI art, together a bad combination), I can be fine with it. That’s my current personal opinion on NFTs.
But we are not talking about NFTs here—let’s go back to Cosplay Token. I had the chance to use 600 COTs as payment for goods. I got this by signing up in the event as a visitor (400 COT) and previously through a lottery at OtaCute’s booth during Japan Fiesta two months ago (200 COT).
This one’s important: Currently, OtaCute’s COT is in the ByBit exchange, and ByBit shoulders gas fees for COT transactions. This means that if I were a ByBit user, I don’t have to pay additional transaction fees (or gas in Etherum terms, in the form of MATIC).
That’s where my problem lies: I don’t have MATIC at first. Sure, I can swap some of my COT using MATIC, but I don’t have MATIC at hand to swap coins. This is a Catch-22 problem that I only faced because I am not using a ByBit wallet. I asked a staff member if I could purchase Php50 worth of MATIC just for things to push through. And so, it did. Remember this part so you don’t face the same problem as mine. It’s a Metamask thing, because the minimum deposit amount from your bank to Metamask is around Php1,700.
So, how did I spend these coins? Over the course of almost 4 hours, I bought two A4 cosplay prints, a bundle of two 4R prints, two hotdog-on-sticks, a 4-piece sushi set, and iced tea. All’s good. I enjoyed the rest of the event especially the music-by-request segment. It felt more like an intimate party rather than a formal launch, which is good because the purpose of these events is to hang out with your fellow fans.
My current impression is that OtaCute is keen on developing the use of COT in the country. I had a chance to sit down with one of OtaCute’s founders, Yu Ohara, and exchange thoughts. I asked Yu-san which country aside from the Philippines has an example of using COT, and he told me about Vietnam. I have yet to ask about this in the future, but do let me know what’s it like there.
I talked to a cosplayer who sells prints about their experience. She told me that it’s as if they’re doing cashless transaction a la GCash. That’s good, because they don’t have to prepare change. Well, as for me, I have to think of those gas fees (thankfully you can at least have 0.1 MATIC and proceed with your transactions).
Thank you for reaching this far. I’m sure this was an unusual experience, but I will continue to monitor Cosplay Token’s use in the Philippines. More stories from this event will be posted on Tiktok, and Cosplay photos are already posted on Facebook.