Dapper Labs is a blockchain company that focuses on bringing NFT projects and digital entertainment to consumers. They are best known for their first NFT project, CryptoKitties, as well as their blockchain, Flow. Dapper Labs aims to make the whole web3 space more inclusive, working on ways to improve their ecosystem in a way that will onboard more users. ^[1]

Overview

Dapper Labs was founded in 2018, by its current CEO, Roham Gharegozlou, based in Vancouver, Canada. The company stemmed from award-winning venture studio, Axion Zen which Roham also founded back in 2013. The blockchain technology company aims to make NFTs and new forms of digital engagement available to fans worldwide through its products, including CryptoKitties, NBA Top Shot, NFL All Day, UFC Strike, etc. ^[1]

They have also launched their blockchain called, Flow which aims to make Web3 accessible for developers, creators, and users, and was created as an alternative to Ethereum as their NFT project, CryptoKitties, caused a jam in their network in 2017. ^[1]

Products

Flow Blockchain

Flow is a decentralized blockchain designed by Dapper Labs as a foundation for Dapps, NFTs, and games. It combines Byzantine Fault Tolerant consensus algorithms with proof-of-stake to achieve high security and efficiency and is designed to overcome the throughput limitations of traditional PoS blockchains. Flow launched in 2020 to provide a user-friendly development platform that will allow developers to experiment with smart contracts and Dapps. It was created after CryptoKitties became popular in 2017 and clogged the Ethereum network, prompting the creation of a new blockchain. ^[26]

NBA Top Shot

NBA Top Shot is a digital marketplace that was launched on the Flow blockchain on October 1st, 2020. The platform enables users to purchase, sell, and exchange video clips of historic basketball moments. These clips are represented by multimedia "moments" of differing levels of rarity. Users can gather these limited edition tokens that portray specific events like game-winning shots or significant plays, along with their accompanying statistics. Completing particular sets of tokens that showcase related moments can unlock exceptionally rare or limited edition NFTs. ^[2][3]

NFL All Day

NFL All Day is an NFT marketplace where fans can purchase, sell, and play for top clips from the NFL. It was launched in August 2022, following NBA Top Shot’s model where clips from the NFL will be represented in the form of an NFT called “moments”. The rarity of the NFTs is categorized into 3 tiers: common, rare, legendary, and ultimate. Some games and challenges arise as an opportunity for users to participate to win more NFTs. ^[4][5][6]

UFC Strike

UFC Strike is a blockchain-based platform created by Flow in collaboration with the UFC, a well-known mixed martial arts organization. On February 26th, 2020, Flow revealed that it would work with the UFC to produce digital assets backed by cryptocurrencies. The platform aims to offer one-of-a-kind or limited edition collectibles for buyers to acquire, with digital assets traded on an open marketplace. This partnership is intended to provide MMA enthusiasts worldwide with a distinctive crypto-powered experience, made possible by the UFC's fanbase. UFC Strike facilitates buying, selling, and trading of their NFTs, which include starter packs, clips of top UFC finishes known as "moments," and HypeNFTs, which are clips of memorable moments or phrases from the UFC. ^[7][8]

Dapper

Dapper is a digital wallet that enables the purchase and storage of various digital assets. It provides an array of services, including payment rails, wallet custodianship, risk mitigation, compliance, customer support, and marketing opportunities. Any team integrated with Dapper can use this tool, including those building on Flow. Dapper is the main wallet service for a range of apps and games powered by Flow, including NBA Top Shot, NFL All Day, UFC Strike, and LaLiga Golazos. It acts as a digital wallet across these products and handles all transactions, such as buying or selling, to keep your non-fungible tokens and Dapper balance secure. ^[9][10]

LaLiga Golazos

LaLiga Golazos is an NFT marketplace where LaLiga fans can purchase, sell, and play for top clips from the NFL. It was launched in October 2022, following NBA Top Shot’s model where clips from LaLiga will be represented in the form of an NFT called “LaLiga moments”. These iconic clips from the Spanish league are accommodated with commentary in both English and Spanish. ^[11]

CryptoKitties

CryptoKitties is an NFT project on the Ethereum blockchain where users can play to breed, collect, and sell virtual cats using cryptocurrency. The game was created by a company called Axiom Zen, based in Vancouver, Canada in November 2017 which caused a surge in transactions on the Ethereum network. Each CryptoKitty is unique and 100% owned by the user, thanks to NFT technology. The supply of kitties is limited, and the game has a complex genetic system that determines the traits of the offspring. ^[12][13]

Cheeze Wizards

Cheeze Wizards was a blockchain-based game that allowed players to summon armies of magical cheese wizards using Ether and compete in a winner-takes-all battle royale for the grand prize, which got bigger with every wizard summoned. The game was built by Udderly Fantastic Enterprises, a subsidiary of Dapper Labs, and was similar to CryptoKitties in that both games used non-fungible tokens. However, unlike CryptoKitties, Cheeze Wizards was a high-stakes, player-versus-player competition, and its wizards also had consumable, tradable value in the form of power. The game's tournament took place throughout October and November of 2019, and the grand prize if around 700ETH was won by B1ackKett1e. ^[14][15][16]

Controversy

Lawsuit

In 2021, Dapper Labs was sued for allegedly violating US securities law by selling unregistered securities. The lawsuit, filed by NBA Top Shot Moments buyers, claims that Dapper Labs improperly controlled the collectibles. ^[17]

On February 22nd, 2023, US District Judge Victor Marrero denied Dapper Labs’ motion to dismiss the suit before trial, stating that the plaintiffs' allegations “pass muster at this stage.” Dapper Labs argues that Moments are not financial instruments, but are simply modernized trading cards and the quarrel between Dapper Labs and the SEC continues. ^[17][18]

“Courts have repeatedly held that consumer goods—including art and collectibles like basketball cards—are not “securities” under federal law. We’re confident the same holds true for Moments and other collectibles, digital or otherwise.” - Dapper Labs

Settlement

In June 2024, Dapper Labs reached a $4 million settlement agreement with investors who sued the company and its co-founder and CEO, Roham Gharegozlou, for allegedly violating federal securities laws. Under the June 3, 2024 agreement, the plaintiffs would be prohibited from claiming their NFTs are securities in exchange for a $4 million settlement fund. ^[27]

CEO Gharegozlou stated that the settlement funds would cover payments to class members, attorneys’ fees, and settlement administrator costs. Dapper Labs also agreed to implement mandatory employee training programs on compliance with federal securities laws and ethical marketing practices, improve payment and withdrawal speeds, and transfer control of its remaining FLOW tokens to the Flow Foundation to ensure decentralization of the Flow ecosystem. ^[27]

“We are continuing to push for more overarching regulatory clarity to showcase that consumer NFTs are not financial products and, as such, should be regulated under well-established consumer protection regimes at the state level,” Gharegozlou said.
“This includes pushing for legislation at the federal level that makes it clear that consumer product NFTs, such as NBA Top Shot, are not subject to federal financial regulation.”^[27]

Gharegozlou added that the company is “not aware of any regulator” like the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) claiming that Moments NFTs are securities. ^[28]

Funding

Series A

On March 21st, 2018, Dapper Labs announced that their NFT project, CryptoKitties raised $12 million in a series A funding round led by Andreessen Horowitz and Union Squares Ventures. ^[19]

Series A2

On November 1st, 2018, Dapper Labs announced they raised $15 million in a series A2 funding round led by Venrock with the backing of GV (formerly Google Ventures) as well as Samsung NEXT. The funds were utilized to assist the Canadian company, in its expansion efforts both domestically and internationally. This entailed the formation of a U.S. subsidiary under the leadership of past executives from Disney and Unity, along with recruitment of new personnel for the Canadian office from prominent corporations such as Ubisoft, Amazon, EA Sports, ESPN, Zynga, and Hasbro. ^[20]

"The evolution of true digital ownership and the interoperability of smart contracts creates new ways for consumers, creators, and platform providers to interact completely peer-to-peer, with no middlemen. Our mission at Dapper Labs is to use games and entertainment to bring the values of decentralization to billions of consumers worldwide. This round of financing was about getting the right partners around the table to bring compelling content to the blockchain – and make sure usability and infrastructure allow for adoption by mainstream consumers." - Roham Gharegozlou, CEO

Flow initial funding

In September 2019 Dapper Labs raised $11 million to develop Flow, a blockchain platform for the entertainment and gaming industries, and collaborate with Ubisoft, Warner Music, and Animoca Brands. Dapper Labs aimed to use the funding to build Flow as a high-performance blockchain without compromising decentralisation, to support apps and gaming ecosystems, and enable digital collectibles for musicians and popular games. Dapper Labs also stated that NBA Top Shot will also run on Flow, which can handle a greater volume of transactions than Ethereum. The funding round was led by Andreessen Horowitz's crypto fund, along with Google and Samsung, among others. ^[21]

“After almost two years of research, we’re excited to share Flow with the world. Flow is a blockchain built from the ground up to support high performance ecosystems of apps and games without compromising decentralization. Bitcoin and Ethereum show how crypto can make the world of finance more open and transparent; Flow will do the same for consumers of entertainment and culture.” - Roham Gharegozlou, CEO

Flow further development funding

In August 2020, Dapper Labs raised $12 million in funding from investors including NBA stars to develop the consumer-focused Flow blockchain. The company intended to use the funds to make it easy for users to collect and own digital items with the assurance that they are genuine. The funds would also be used to help scale the Flow blockchain and support collaborations with Dr. Seuss Enterprises, Warner Music, and UFC, among others. ^[22]

NBA venture fund

In March 2021, Dapper Labs raised $305 million in private funding led by Coatue Management to expand its virtual NBA trading card platform, with some contributions coming from active players at the time, as well as former NBA players, such as Michael Jordan. Dapper Labs also collaborated with other partners such as Warner Music Group, Ubisoft, and UFC. The funds were to be used to extend Dapper Labs’ NFT and blockchain products to other sports leagues and entertainment studios. Some of the investors included Kevin Durant, Kyle Lowry, Spencer Dinwiddie, Klay Thompson, and rapper 2 Chainz. ^[23]

Series D

In September 2021, Dapper Labs raised $250 million in a funding round led by Coatue, which valued the company at $7.6 billion. Existing investors, including Andreessen Horowitz, GV, and Version One Ventures, joined the round, and new investors like BOND and GIC also participated. ^[24]

“We think Dapper Labs is a leader in the space at the infrastructure level with the Flow blockchain and at the application layer with NBA Top Shot. We continue to be impressed by Roham’s strong leadership and vision and we could not be more proud to partner with him and the entire team at Dapper.” - Coatue Ventures Chairman Dan Rose

Partnerships

• Youtube
• A16z
• Venrock
• Union Square Ventures
• SV Angel
• WndrCo
• Axiomatic Gaming
• Barbie
• Digital Currency Group
• Samsung NEXT
• GV
• Endeavor ^[25]