Rumors that the APE token of the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT collection could be used as the payment currency in an upcoming Yuga Labs land sale has caused a 55% price increase in just three days. The rumor started on April 18 and suggests that the owners of the BAYC and MAYC NFTs may receive access to a whitelist to purchase virtual lands in the Yuga Labs’ much-anticipated Otherside metaverse project.
- A tweet from Willy Bullish on April 18 suggested a list of NFT collections included in the upcoming whitelist land sale
- Rumors APE is needed to buy lands caused a 46% surge in price in three days
- APE price could move even higher as speculation around token utility grows
- The Otherside metaverse world is still clouded in mystery
Chinese whispers
The rumor started when a Tweet from Willy Bullish suggested a list of NFT collections to be included in the upcoming whitelist land sale by the new metaverse project Otherside. Notably, the list provided by Willy Bullish indicated that BAYC and MAYC holders would be in line for privileged spots to get their hands on center and middle lands, while others can only obtain lands on the outer rim.
Interestingly within minutes of the Tweet, hungry speculators started looking under the hood of the image to reveal what they think is an easter egg and potentially another NFT collection to be included in the whitelist. Either they are on to something or clutching at straws. However, only time will tell regarding that. Yet, one thing is very clear, the hype is building.
APE potentially needed to purchase land
Further rumors started to circulate that APE would be the token required to purchase lands in Otherside, which caused a surge in its price. Over the last seven days, the price has increased around 34%, but the real spike started on April 18 as rumors circulated. APE shot up from a low of $11 to its current price today of $16.07 at writing, representing a 46% increase in less than three days. Given this potential use case for APE, demand for ApeCoin may now grow further, which could partially explain APE’s surge in the last three days.
What is Otherside?
Otherside is a forthcoming MMORPG game where players employ their NFTs as native avatars or characters. A leaked investor pitch deck that started to circulate online in late March 2022 showed that Yuga Labs expects to earn $178 million by selling virtual lands, with APE the primary token required to make land purchases. Otherside will be developed in conjunction with blockchain gaming powerhouse Animoca Brands. More speculation links the metaverse world to other NFT collections issued directly in the metaverse.
Evolving APE
While it’s still very early days for APE, one undeniable success of BAYC and the broader ecosystem has been the interest in APE tokens after launch. Five days after the APE release, Yuga Labs announced that it had completed a $450-million fundraising round, valuing the company at $4 billion. The investment is one of the largest ever made into an NFT-focused firm. It suggests that the likes of venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, which led the fundraising round, have recognized the success and potential for further growth.
The above does not constitute investment advice. The information given here is purely for informational purposes only. Please exercise due diligence and do your research. The writer holds positions in various cryptocurrencies, including BTC, ETH, and RADAR.
