Inside the Biggest NFT Merger Ever
Bored Ape Yacht Club just purchased Crypto Punks, changing the NFT world forever.
Hi!
Hello everyone! These past few days have been so hectic with the NFTree Launch and presenting at SXSW (more info below). Super grateful for the NFTree team and all of y’all who have been supporting the project since its early development. Now it’s time to dive into some creator economy news — have a great week!
-Jade Darmawangsa
Meme of the Week:
How The NFTree Launch Went 🌲
@jadedarmawangsa on Instagram
NFTree officially launched at SXSW 2022 this past week. Private sale went live on March 19th and sold 25 out of the 60 available trees within the first 24 hours.
There were some issues along the way, but overall the launch went well and I’m excited that the project is finally available to purchase and mint! Thank you to everyone who supported this project — it’s been a long past few months but worth it all the way 😊
Inside the Biggest NFT Merger Yet 🔄
Credit: Coinbase Bytes
Yuga Labs, the developers of Bored Ape Yacht Club, recently purchased the popular NFT collectible series CryptoPunks from its creators, Larva Labs. This merger stands as the biggest in the NFT world and is said to set a precedent for future NFT mergers.
What Does the Merger Entail?
This major acquisition is groundbreaking for the two projects. While financial details of the deal weren’t disclosed, the two collections are massively popular online with more than $2.5 billion in combined secondary market sales.
➡ How Will This Effect BAYC Holders?
BAYC members have cashed in on their IP rights in a wide variety of ways. While Yuga Labs owns the commercial rights to the overall BAYC branding, individual owners have put their NFTs to work as the faces of a wide range of projects. Other holders have used their avatars to help market products ranging from IPAs, cannabis, and comic strips.
➡ What Does This Mean for CryptoPunks?
Despite having recently signed a deal with top Hollywood agency UTA, CryptoPunks has stayed relatively quiet, especially when compared to BAYC. In a statement, the founders of Larva Labs admitted that their hands-off approach might not have been ideal — and that CryptoPunks “now need a steward with a different skill set in order to continue growing.”
Why Does This Matter?
While prices for A-list projects like BAYC and CryptoPunks remain high, the acquisition comes at a time when many fear the NFT market is settling down. The average selling price of NFTs has fallen 48% in recent weeks compared to 2021’s November highs. On OpenSea — the largest NFT marketplace — trading volumes for March reached over $50 million. While $50 million is still a lot of money, the amount seems to be far off the track of last month’s $248 million peak. The number of accounts buying and selling NFTs weekly also declined, from 380,000 in November to 194,000 this year.
However, the positive reaction Yuga Labs has received for granting CryptoPunk owners the right to earn from their avatars is a sign of how highly customers of Web3 brands value real ownership of their virtual property. According to Coinbase, “the NFT brands that grant ownership rights, like BAYC, Nouns, and CryptoToadz, will likely see deeper engagement from their communities in the long-term than those that don’t, as commercial rights incentivize NFT communities to innovate with and add value to the IP they own.”
In Other News 📰
Russia Bans Meta as “Extremist”: The Russian court has banned Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, for "extremist" activities. The ruling immediately bans Facebook and Instagram from Russia (not including WhatsApp at the moment). Russian authorities are also seeking to designate Meta as an "extremist organization”. In the hearing, government prosecutors appeared to specify that ‘regular’ people using Facebook or Instagram would not face consequences.
My Take: As of now, the full scope of this ban is unclear, but Russia’s attempt to rule Meta as an “extremist” organization could contribute to not only the violence in Russia but civilian protests. More than 15,000 protestors were arrested protesting against rulings that have criminalized making public statements against the Russia-Ukraine crisis.
Thanks for reading! We’ll catch you next week.