Nov 21, 2022.
Remember when rapper Mike Jones had everyone singing, “Back then they didn’t want me. Now I’m hot; they all on me?” If there were a reverse meaning to this lyric in object form, it would be the popularity of NFT collections.
Several months ago, non-fungible tokens (NFT) were all the rave. Almost every week, there was an announcement about a different influencer or organization turning their product or experience into an NFT.
And while some financial experts predicted the depreciation of some NFTs, many didn’t think they would plummet in value as quickly as they did.
A post shared by Bored Ape Yacht Club (@boredapeyachtclub)
Among the most popular NFTs were those created by the Bored Ape Yacht Club. The group had celebrities digging deep into their bags to drop major coins on its NFT collections. AfroTech reported that Steph Curry purchased a Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT for 55 ETH, equating to $180,000.
Another high-profile person who rode the Bored Ape NFT wave was Justin Bieber. According to Techspot, the “Yummy” singer paid $1.29 million for ape #3001. At the time of the purchase, financial experts thought the singer spent too much for the NFT. Nevertheless, Bieber bought another Ape NFT for around $400,000 a month later.
Justin Bieber bought this NFT for $444k. We posted this picture of the same NFT for free. pic.twitter.com/wXM8VIdiNE
— Market Rebellion (@MarketRebels) February 4, 2022
Since the massive purchase, the cryptocurrency market suffered with the crash of TerraUSD and Luna, wiping nearly $1 trillion off the market. As a result, prices for NFTs never recovered, being impacted even further by the implosion of the FTX crypto exchange.
This disruption in the market had negative impacts on NFT values. According to a report from Decrypt, Bored Ape NFT collection pieces plummeted to $60,000, with recent improvements taking the price up to only $69,000.
Considering all the movement around the market, Bieber’s $1.29 million lost about 95 percent of his money from the initial investment.
Despite challenges, companies have not given up on NFTs, as companies like Mattel are gearing up to turn toys into NFT collectibles in time for the holidays.
Lover of Culture. Curator of Motivation. Advocate for Equity. Josh Rodgers is a writer and content creator originally from Memphis, TN. Along with AfroTech, Josh’s work can be seen on Blavity News, Travel Noir, Shadow & Act, and Buzzfeed. When he isn’t writing, he can be found on the mic as the co-host and founder of The Jigsaw Podcast – a platform dedicated to helping Black millennials attempt to navigate the craziest puzzle piece ever created, life.
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