Seven NFTs Lose a Collective $29.6 Million in a Year

2021 was the year of the NFT. During the bull run, it seemed that anyone could mint a collection and there was a high chance it would sell out. Today, the story is different. The global macroeconomic environment means people have less disposable cash. And the falling demand for NFTs with little utility has resulted in some unfortunate holders carrying the bag for everyone else.  

Key Takeaways

• Seven NFTs have lost an aggregated $29,650,760 in collective value, according to their last sale price and DappRadar’s NFT Value Estimator.
• The biggest winners in the NFT space are also the biggest losers. CryptoPunks, Bored Apes and Azuki feature as some of the biggest value droppers.
• Huge drops in value are a result of declining interest in NFTs and dips in crypto prices across all blockchains.

DappRadar’s NFT Value Estimator is a great tool for anyone who wants to track the performance of digital assets and decide whether or not they’re getting a bargain. It’s also the perfect way to look at how well blue chip NFTs have held their value after fetching mega price tags in the not-too-distant past.

CryptoPunks #5822 – bought for $23.58 million

It’s difficult to say whether this Punk has lost a lot of real value or if the person who bought it overpaid at the time. Even at the peak of the NFT rush, spending $23.58 million on a CryptoPunk, no matter its rarity, seems extravagant.

Deepak Thapliyal, the CEO of Chain, purchased the non-fungible token on February 12, 2022. Thapliyal bought the Punk directly from Larva Labs’ native marketplace and paid for it using the DeFi platform Compound Finance.

Considering the fall in the dollar-value of ETH from its February 12 price of $2,930, Thapliyal’s investment doesn’t look like a good one today. At the time, Thapliyal tweeted, ‘Thanks to Compound Finance, I am able to [still] hold ETH while buying this. Basically long’d ETH to punk-in’.

Estimated Price Today: $2.64 million

Bored Ape Yacht Club #8817 – bought for $3.4 million

Brandon Buchanan bought Bored Ape #8817 for $3.4 million at Sotheby’s Metaverse auction site. This makes it the most expensive NFT in the 10,000-strong BAYC collection. But according to DappRadar’s NFT Value Estimator, its current market value is $805,043.

The sale didn’t go through the usual Web3 secondary marketplaces, so we can’t see the value of the trade on Etherscan. But we know exactly when the Ape was transferred, and we can see the wallet it was transferred to.

After moving through a couple of wallets without any cryptocurrency changing hands, Bored Ape #8817 now sits here, which also contains two IKB Cachet de Garanties, a , some Chromie Squiggles and the most expensive CrypToadz of all time (more on that below).

Brandon Buchanan, the head of Meta4 Capital has a serious NFT collection and his wallet is definitely worth following for anyone who’s interested in the activity of blue chip holders.

Estimated Price Today: $805,043

Meka #2194 – bought for $1.83 million

This NFT sold for $1.83 million on December 30, 2021. It would be a remarkable price whatever the situation. But it was met with shock at the time because the MekaVerse project was already dealing with accusations of fraud and insider trading.

When the sale went through, which you can see on Etherscan, experts and online commentators expressed concern that we were all witnessing some form of wash trading or money laundering. At the time, there was no mention of the record-breaking trade on MekaVerse’s official Twitter feed.

If we look at the wallet where Meka #2194 sits, we can see there’s only one other NFT in there. It’s an ENS Domain called ‘who-remembers-mekaverse-500eth-sale.eth’ Either this is the most expensive troll of all time, or something shady took place.

Estimated Price Today: $5,444

CrypToadz #1519 – bought $1.51 million

The owner of CrypToadz #1519 has already been mentioned once in this list. Brandon Buchanan counts this piece among his personal collection and paid over a million and half dollars for it on October 6, 2021.

Since then, the CrypToadz project has fallen from its position as the potential “next CryptoPunks” and what once seemed a blue chip is now something of a busted flush. The floor price for a Toad is currently less than $3,000, representing a comedown for the once-buoyant community. 

In good news, a CrypToadz did appear in the trailer for the Otherside virtual world in March 2022. So holders can still expect future utility, such as early access to Yuga Labs’ upcoming metaverse platform.

Estimated Price Today: $13,305

Azuki #9605 – bought $1.42 million

A buyer by the name of Jason, known as @Bitcoin4Freedom on Twitter, purchased Azuki #9605 on March 30, 2022. He confirmed the trade the same day via his social media account.

Jason moved the NFT into this wallet on the same day he bought it. If we take a look at the wallet, we can see he also holds CryptoPunks, Bored Apes, a Azuki, , , Beanz, Invisible Friends, Otherside land, and more.

Azuki #9605 has an estimated value 75% less than its record-breaking previous sale price but this hasn’t stopped Bitcoin4Freedom from trying to recoup some costs. In July 2022, four months after buying the NFT, he listed it as available: for the princely sum of 1200 ETH.  

Estimated Price Today: $367,814

CloneX #4594 – bought for $1.25 million

CloneX is a collection of 20,000 algorithmically-generated 3D characters. Holders have been getting increasing access to the virtual world created by Nike’s Web3 studio RTKFT. The collection is a collaboration between RTKFT and artist Takashia Murakami.

Unlike most NFT projects, CloneX hasn’t seen a huge drop-off in value during this year’s bear market. This is probably a result of its connection to Nike, the consistent roll out of new utilities and the promise of great rewards to come. The great design is certainly another factor in continued community engagement.

Unfortunately for FT3azlCollection, the owner of the item, DappRadar’s NFT Value Estimator suggests the price of CloneX #4594 has dropped massively since they bought. Saying this, losses are not realized until you sell, and judging by this CloneX whale’s wallet, they don’t plan on selling any time soon.

Estimated Price Today: $133,777

K4M-1 #03 – bought $626,393

Social media influencer and NFT collector Logan Paul paid $626,393 for K4M-1 #03 on August 23, 2021. Paul and his NFT hit the Web3 headlines recently when online publications gleefully reported it’s now worth only $10. 

There’s good news and bad news for the amateur boxer here: the good news is the NFT is worth more than $10; the bad news is that we estimate its value at $8,250. That’s a 98% drop.

Still, we won’t feel too sorry for Paul. Looking into his wallet, we can see he holds an NFT collection worth more than $1 million. It contains three CryptoPunks, which alone have an estimated value of $694,402. 

Estimated Price Today: $8,250