Key Takeaways
- Another CryptoPunks NFT has crossed over a million dollars, selling for ETH 312.5 or $1.18M in current evaluation
- The seller has made over $19M from CryptoPunk sells
- Rise in NFT projects has not deminished the value or popularity of CryptoPunks
YEREVAN (CoinChapter.com) — As Non-Fungible Tokens (NFT) continue to gain more traction, another CryptoPunk (#1182) sold today for over $1 million. According to the data provided by CryptoPunks founders LarvaLabs, Punk #1182 is one of the original punks claimed for free by the wallet in June 2017. The owner sold it for a whopping 312.5 ETH or $1.18 million in current valuation.
Years down the line, the free NFT has made the original owner a million dollars richer. Punk NFT tracking account CryptoPunks Bot shared the news on Twitter.
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CryptoPunks rule the NFT world
Despite the rising popularity of many NFT platforms, like Axie Infinity, Bored Ape Yacht Club, and CyberKongz, CryptoPunks remain high in demand.
The early NFT collection consists of 24 by 24 pixels collectible characters with a maximum supply of 10,000 Punks. Inspired by the punk rock scene, Matt Hall and John Watkinson of Larva Labs founded the collection in 2017.
Before the launch, the company announced it would give out 10,000 different NFT cartoon characters to anyone with an Ethereum wallet for free. The fact that the creators were giving them out for free made the project seem worthless. No one could imagine the popularity these hideous-looking pixelated collectibles would enjoy.
A few years down the line, however, the NFT revolution kicked in. Platforms like the OpenSea emerged, and CryptoPunks got to ride the new wave. Now, they could be traded even outside the Larva Labs ecosystem.
Interestingly, 3 out of the top 4 most expensive NFTs ever sold are CryptoPunks.
In May this year, a collection from the project sold for nearly $17 million at Christie’s.
In another major auction, Sotheby’s sold a rare CryptoPunk for over $11.7 million in June. Dubbed “Covid Alien,” CryptoPunk 7523 caught the attention of Shalom Mackenzie, the largest shareholder of DraftKings.
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How CryptoPunks helped find insider trading at OpenSea
One of the most embarrassing moments in NFT trading came in September. In a shocking revelation, Nate Chastain, Head of Product at the world’s largest NFT platform OpenSea, indulged in insider trading activity.
The incident came to light when Twitter user ZuwuTV questioned OpenSea about the actions of their employee.
To the apparent shock and disappointment of the NFT community, ZuwuTV revealed that Chastain “has a few secret wallets that appears to buy your front page drops before they are listed, then sells them shortly after the front-page-hype spike for profits”.
Of course, Nate’s actions may have gone unnoticed if it wasn’t for a CryptoPunk he owns.
Nate Chatain’s display picture (DP) on Twitter is an NFT CryptoPunk #35. According to OpenSea data, the owner of the wallet A3A45T purchased the Non-Fungible Token on Feb 25, 2021, for 26.98 Ether (ETH).
With this information, ZuwuTV identified the wallet as Nate Chastain’s. He was hence able to track all other transactions and activities by him.
On close observation, ZuwuTv identified illegal front running and publicly alerted OpenSea about it.
Open Sea opened an investigation immediately after issuing an apology.
Nate Chastain was found guilty and forced to resign from his position at the organization.
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Earning over 19M from CryptoPunks
While selling a CryptoPunk for over $1M seems like a lot, this is not the first million the unidentified user has made.
LarvaLabs data shows the owner has made $19.17 million by selling 84 NFTs from CryptoPunks. On Oct 1, the owner sold another NFT, Punk 1177, for 330 ETH. Based on current ETH prices, it is $1.18 million.
As NFTs continues to grow, with new players and celebrities rushing into the space, CryptoPunks remains relevant, with the collection’s value only going up.
