- February 18, 2022
- Posted by: admin
- Category: NFT
An ardent non-fungible token (NFT) collector and Ethereum (ETH) user made history by paying USD $23 million for a CryptoPunk token, the most fee ever paid for an item in the so-called “OG” collection.
On Saturday, the item, CryptoPunk #5822, was sold to Deepak Thapliyal, the CEO of Chain, a blockchain startup. Thapliyal revealed on Twitter that he paid for the transaction using Compound Finance (COMP) leverage, leaving him “HODLing” ETH tokens.
Thapliyal seems to have spent somewhat more than the token is presently worth (USD 7.54m), according to DappRadar figures, but the item’s rarity – and the collection’s continued popularity – might easily enhance its value at a later date.
CryptoPunks, according to the same company, “was launched before there was a standard for NFTs (ERC-721).”
Thapliyal’s rapidly expanding NFT collection now includes a number of high-value tokens, including many Bored Ape releases (the most expensive of which is presently worth an estimated USD 1.29), Wrapped CryptoPunks, Adidas Originals NFTs, and metaverse virtual world plots of land.
He also has more than USD 72 million in crypto assets and stable coins, as well as decentralized financing (DeFi) operations, including USD $25 million in DeFi debt with Compound.
According to CryptoSlam statistics, CryptoPunks selling activity is somewhat modest compared to many younger collections, but when rare CryptoPunk NFTs do change hands, they tend to do so for equally exorbitant prices.
On February 9, a cowboy hat-wearing monkey sculpture sold for a cool USD $7.7 million in ETH, according to OpenSea statistics.
However, piece #5822 is one of the most sought-after CryptoPunk figures, since his light blue complexion denotes that he is an “alien,” a trait shared by just 0.02% of the total collection. He also wears a bandana, which is worn by just 5% of punks worldwide. In 2017, however, he was only able to sell for 8 ETH. (USD $1,646).
Larva Labs Studios designed the CryptoPunks collection, which was released in mid-2017. The company produced 10,000 NFTs, and the collection made history last year when CrytoPunks items were sold at a Sotheby’s auction.