NFT Showdown: BAYC and Pudgy Penguins Vie for Dominance

• The Bored Ape Yacht Club price floor trades flat.
• The Pudgy Penguins NFT collection is on the ascendancy.
• The shakeup suggests a shift in investor sentiment away from celebrity culture.

When Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) first launched in April 2021, the collection quickly became the crown jewel of NFT projects. Bolstered by celebrity endorsements from Steph Curry, Eminem, Justin Bieber, and many more, the BAYC price floor soon rose to an all-time high of 128 ETH (approximately US$365,000). 

While BAYC remains a top NFT project, its price floor has dropped significantly since the top, currently at 22.95 ETH (approximately US$57,200) at the time of writing. At the same time, Pudgy Penguins (PP) has seen a meteoric rise to the point that both collections are near price floor parity. 

BAYC NFT Collection Losing Its Shine?

An analysis conducted by NFTstats.eth highlighted the converging price floors of BAYC and PP, which are closing in on near one-to-one parity with the former marginally in the lead. Emphasizing the dramatic shift in fortunes, NFTstats.eth stated, “A BAYC once got you 100 Pudgy Penguins.”

Data from NFTPriceFloor showed that BAYC peaked at 128 ETH in May 2022, but amid the broader NFT cool-off, its price floor plunged around 80% since then. However, from August 2023, BAYC’s downtrend appears to have bottomed, as the price floor began ranging between 21.99 ETH and 29.45 ETH since then.

BAYC price floor per NFTPriceFloor

Conversely, PP got off to a comparatively slower start since launching in July 2021 , reaching a peak of 6.43 ETH in January 2023. Q4 2023 saw PP rallying to a new all-time high of 20.28 ETH on February 12.

PP price floor per NFTPriceFloor

While recent months have seen PP in the ascendency, BAYC continues to struggle to regain its former glories, leading many to ask what went wrong. 

BAYC’s Loss, Pudgy’s Gain

Amid BAYC’s struggles to regain its former glories, allegations of its ties to Nazism did little to restore investor confidence. Accusers stated that BAYC’s skull logo bears a striking resemblance to Nazi symbolism, which parent company Yuga Labs vigorously denied.

Since launching BAYC, Yuga Labs also released multiple spin-offs , including Mutant Ape Yacht Club, Bored Ape Kennel Club, Bored Ape Chemistry Club, and its Otherside metaverse, perhaps diluting BAYC’s claim to exclusivity. Moreover, a recent Coinmonks post went to the heart of the matter by claiming that BAYC “have truly grown dull.”

Meanwhile, PP opted for a different route by intertwining the virtual and physical realms. Their launch of a physical toy line, available in Walmart and Toys’R’Us stores, added a tangible dimension to their NFT universe. Each toy bears a QR code, inviting enthusiasts to enter the whimsical “Pudgy World.” 

Additionally, PP’s core values encompass “love, empathy, and compassion,” which makes a refreshing change to superficial celebrity endorsements.

On the Flipside

• There is a growing realization that celebrity culture is meaningless in a post-covid world.
• To date, only Bitcoin has managed to resist crypto churn and stay dominant, perhaps due to its unique position as the more trusted and secure blockchain.

Why This Matters

BAYC’s fall from grace spotlights the difficulty in remaining at the top as cycles churn and challengers gain prominence. While BAYC enjoyed A-list celebrity backing, Pudgy Penguins tapped into positive vibes and empowerment values, demonstrating a shift in public conscience towards sovereignty and away from celebrity culture.

Read about Yuga Labs winning its copyright infringement case here:
BAYC Copycat Fined $1.6M In Yuga’s Trademark Infringement Case

Find out about Bitcoin reaching a major milestone in the halving countdown here:
Bitcoin Hits Halving Milestone With 10,000 Blocks Remaining