By
Godfrey Benjamin
April 29th, 2024
Once it launched in April 2021, BAYC quickly catapulted to success and became the giant of the non-fungible token (NFT) space.
Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) NFTs are currently experiencing what may be the worst downturn in their history. This follows after the floor price of the once-popular set of NFTs fell to 10.9 ETH (approximately $34,000) on Monday. The BAYC floor price hit 9.5 ETH in early August 2021, so its current level hasn’t been seen since that same month.
BAYC: A Grace to Grass Story?
For anyone who knows, the collection was once the rave of the moment. Once it launched in April 2021, it quickly catapulted to success and became the giant of the NFT space.
The success of BAYC held firm even when the overall NFT market became depressed. So much so that its community continued to be engaged while it boasted popular iterative collections, confirming its status as an undisputed leader of the pack.
BAYC became even more popular when celebrities started associating with the NFTs. The likes of popular comedian Kevin Hart and singer Justin Bieber did acquire NFTs from the collection even though they later sold them for a significantly lesser amount than their original price.
In late 2022, trouble soon began when Bored Apes investors’ filed a class action lawsuit against alleging that celebrities publicly promoted Bored Apes and MoonPay without clearly stating that they had received compensation for the promotion. MoonPay is the crypto startup that helped Hart to procure a BAYC in 2022. The firm also reportedly gifted other celebrities, including Snoop Dogg, Madonna, and Jimmy Fallon, among others, BAYC NFTs in exchange for promoting its business.
MoonPay denied those allegations, saying it never gave out any NFTs for free. However, the plaintiffs seek a jury trial and more than $5 million in damages.
Per charts, BAYC remains the top NFT collection in the collectibles market in terms of sales volume. At least, according to what Cryptoslam data suggests, its all-time sales volume exceeds $3 billion. Nonetheless, the sudden change in the fortunes of this collection is something that boggles the mind.
NFT Market Outlook
Without a doubt, the NFT market is a shadow of what it used to be in the pandemic era. It may be because the market is already oversaturated with different kinds of NFTs. However, as Forbes detailed in a January report, buyer interest in NFTs has significantly reduced, hence the falling market prices. The broader economic environment also plays a major role. Recall that the NFT boom coincided with economic uncertainty. However, with normalcy gradually returning to world economies, it is only expected that people will have reduced interest in high-risk investments.
Generally, the prices of NFTs, including collectibles like Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), can fluctuate based on various factors. They include market demand, rarity, and trends within the crypto and NFT communities. However, for BAYC, whose floor price once peaked at 128 ETH, it appears to be more than just a fluctuation. Rather, it looks increasingly like a sustained downward spiral that is headed for the rocks.