NFTs have changed the game for collectibles. What was once physical and accessible only to the rich, has broadened its horizons. NFT collectibles are digital, decentralized, and immutable. They are selling for a fortune on NFT marketplaces and the world’s leading auction houses like Sotheby’s and Christie’s. The transparent, trustless record of ownership gives these digital collectibles an edge over their traditional counterparts. They’re the future.
Let’s take a look at the top five NFT collectibles and how they make an excellent investment this year.
NFTs are characterized by trustless, transparent transactions. When you transfer the digital collectibles, the blockchain records the transactions on an immutable ledger. This is huge. Yet, few projects deliver real-world use cases of NFTs. One such project tops our list of the five best NFT collectibles in 2022 — Cocky.
Cocky is an NFT lifestyle club that gives members exclusive access to world-class music events. It offers unparalleled, real-life experiences to Cocky NFT holders, in the form of both physical and virtual music events. The project promises to take members through experiences that money can’t buy, only ownership can.
There will be two to four in-person Cocky events annually, which take place in spectacular locations hand-picked to provide an immersive experience. Due to the capacity limitations of real-world venues, entry is not guaranteed to all Cocky NFT holders. However, Cocky virtual events are held more frequently in the form of live streams. Access to these events is exclusively reserved for Cocky NFT holders.
Cocky events solely focus on electronic music. The key factor that sets apart these events is their unconventional locations. The events are themed around the landscape, history, and culture of each location.
Let’s take a look at the unique features and functionalities of Cocky, and how they make it one of the best NFT collectibles to buy this year.
Cocky Can NFTs feature 51 skin variations, distributed amongst all Cocky cans. The lids, on the other hand, can be silver, gold, and black.
Cocky Can NFT lids contribute to more than just rarity. They represent the tier system of the Cocky ecosystem. You are randomly assigned a tier based on your NFT, giving equal opportunity to all participants. The lids or tiers come with various benefits at the events as follows:
Another unique feature of Cocky Can NFT collectibles is passport stamps. You can attend Cocky events and participate within the Cocky community to earn mutations on your NFTs. They are added to the NFT’s background in the form of a stamp. The stamps allow you to write your own story to your Cocky Can and increase its rarity. You could say it adds a personal touch to your cool NFTs.
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If you thought the randomly assigned tiers on your NFTs are the only way to get perks and privileges at Cocky events, you’re wrong. There is more. Three lucky Cocky Can NFT holders are randomly selected from registered attendees before each real-life Cocky event. The NFTs of these participants blackout before the event, making them eligible for exclusive VIP benefits for that particular event.
Black Can is the rarest of all Cocky Can NFTs. The lucky holder of the Black Can NFT is eligible for VIP benefits for perpetuity! Not a bad deal, ah!
As mentioned above, Cocky Can NFTs don’t guarantee you a spot at real-world Cocky music events. They just allow you to register for the events owing to the geographical constraints and seat capacity limitations specific to each location. However, the project has a well-defined system in place to ensure equal opportunity for all holders.
This is made possible through a custom-built, second-hand market. If you receive a ticket to a Cocky event but are unable to attend it for some reason, you can list it for sale on the secondary market. It’s important to note that only a Cocky Can NFT holder is eligible to purchase a ticket on the secondary market.
While the pre-mint sale of Cocky Can NFTs has already begun, the collection is slated for launch in the fourth quarter of 2022. Open registration for the first holders’ event begins during the same phase. The tickets will be issued to attendees in the first quarter of next year. The first holders’ event and live stream will also be held in the first quarter of 2023.
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CryptoPunks needs no introduction. The collection of 10,000 algorithmically-generated characters on the Ethereum blockchain is considered one of the best digital collectibles of all time.
The 24×24 pixel fun little pop art portraits were at the forefront of the crypto art movement at one point. Regardless of how the market shifts towards more utility-rich projects, CryptoPunks will always have a special place in the history of NFTs. For the same reason, they prove to be a great investment this year.
The 1000 Punks were owned by the development team of the project. They are called Dev Punks and are considered premium. The 10,000 Punks are divided into five categories primarily — female, male, alien, zombie, and ape. The value of a Punk depends on its rarity. Rare Punks like Aliens, Apes, and Zombies are highly expensive.
For example, the rarest Alien Punks are only nine in total. You will find them on the top NFT sale lists often. Next comes Apes and Zombies, with 24 and 88 members each. On the other hand, human punks are more common. There are 6,039 male Punks and 3,840 female Punks in total. Female Punks are more sought-after than Male Punks owing to their rarity.
While the cool NFT collection was confined to a small community of crypto enthusiasts in its early stages, the market exploded during the pandemic. The interest was further fueled by celebrities, influencers, VCs, angel investors, KOLs, poker stars, and business leaders. As the price surged like crazy, Punks soon rose to become a status symbol.
According to Dappradar, it continues to be the world’s top NFT collection, with a sizable market cap of $902.26M. The floor price of the collection stands at $91.12k, which speaks volumes about its historical relevance.
CryptoPunks is not the first NFT, it’s not the last. And it certainly is not the best one out there. But none of that can take away the fact that Punks played a key role in laying the foundation of the NFT market. It inspired digital artists to monetize their creativity.
The Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) is considered one of the world’s most popular NFT collections. While BAYC and Punks raced side-by-side for a long time, BAYC took over Punks with its top-tier partnerships and integrations. Currently, BAYC boasts an impressive floor price of $106.59k against the $91.12k floor price of Punks. The market cap of BAYC is also higher, at $1.05B.
The collection of 10,000 Apes with different quirky features, fur varieties, face expressions, clothing, and jewelry excel as artwork. However, it is hard to point out what makes BAYC immensely popular, apart from hype. We must say brand and celebrity participation, community strength, and utilities have contributed to BAYC’s success.
BAYC has to be the NFT collection that received the most attention from the celebrity community in the recent past. You will be surprised to learn that anchor Jimmy Fallon and singer Justin Beiber were among the prestigious buyers of the cool NFT collection. They inspired more rich people to buy the NFTs and skyrocket their prices by creating a frenzy of sales. Apart from that, the elite collection is also known for landing controversies from time to time.
Another key factor that contributes to the success of BAYC is its top-tier partnerships with brands like Adidas, Rolling Stone, Animoca Brands, etc. The project has also been successful in expanding its ecosystem through interesting integrations. For example, the highly sought-after Mutant Ape Yacht Club NFTs are created by exposing existing Bored Apes to a vial of MUTANT SERUM. The creative initiatives continue to engage holders.
BAYC’s community strength is also worth mentioning. The community hosts meetings from time to time in the world’s top cities like New York, California, Hong Kong, and the United Kingdom. The key difference between BAYC and its predecessors like CryptoPunks is its business approach. It has been successful in not just creating hype around the project, but also continuously building value for holders.
Although the collection is hefty, it is expected to gain more value in the coming months as the project expands its ecosystem.
The next best digital collectible that made our list is XCOPY artworks. XCOPY is one of the world’s leading digital artists. The artist’s real identity is unknown, which adds to the mystery element of the artwork. They are usually centered around death, dystopia, and apathy. Another common element of XCOPY’s works is flashing imagery and distorted loops.
XCOPY was one of the earliest digital artists to use NFT technology. In the initial stages, his artworks were sold for low prices inside a small community. However, they gradually gained popularity and were sold on platforms like SuperRare for higher prices. His most notable works are Right-Click and Save As Guy and Grifters. Right-Click and Save As Guy takes a dig at the common criticism against NFTs that anybody can save a copy from the web by right-clicking the image. Ironically, the work was sold for approximately $7,000,000 on 9 December 2021. It is one of the most expensive NFTs to date.
XCOPY’s artworks have been featured in the “Lugano NFT Week” exhibition at Villa Ciani in Lugano, “CryptOGs”: The Pioneers of NFT Art at Bonhams, “DART2121” exhibition at Museo della Permanente in Milan, and “Milano Art Week 2022” exhibition in Milan, 2022.
We wrap up this list of five top NFT collectibles with NBA Top Shot. The collections feature various moments in NBA history, similar to traditional sports trading cards. The only difference is that they are tokenized on blockchain for immutable records of transfer of ownership.
According to Dappradar, it is one of the world’s top NFT collections, with a trading volume of $969.27M. You don’t need to spend a fortune to buy them, however. The average price of an NBA Top Shot is $48.
As sports memorabilia, NBA Top Shot has earned a place in the highly experimental NFT market. We expect it to gain value in the coming years as NFT collectibles become an integral part of the sports sector.
NFTs are cool. They’re also highly lucrative. But you need to know which one is worth buying. In this article, we took you through the top NFT collectibles of this year and how they’re positioned to scale growth. While CryptoPunks, BAYC, NBA Top Shots, and XCOPY are highly coveted, they have little value outside the collectible market.
Cocky Can NFTs, on the other hand, not only accrue value on long-term holding but also provide real-world utility during the holding period. Whether you’re a music lover or an NFT collector, Cocky Can NFTs make an excellent investment this year.
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Disclaimer: This is a paid release. The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the content provider and do not necessarily represent those of Bitcoinist. Bitcoinist does not guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of information available in such content. Do your research and invest at your own risk.
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