Why Have Bored Ape NFTs Become So Popular?
I’m sure you’ve seen one, but don’t recognize them as expensive. The bored ape NFT was listed for .08 ETH in April of 2021, and now they’re trading for thousands of dollars each. You need to read ahead to understand what BAYC is and why they are so popular.
What is the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC)?
As the name suggests, it is a club of members that own a bored ape NFT. The BAYC cannot have members exceeding 10,000 because the collection has 10,000 such bored ape NFTs in different styles and appearances. Hence, it is understood that to be a member of this club, you should own at least one of these ape NFTs.
These 10,000 NFTs represent a unique collectible built on the Ethereum blockchain. Each of these NFTs in the collection is identified by their unique trait stored as an ERC-721 token. These traits could be clothing, headwear, facial expressions, etc.
Fun Fact: Marshall Mathers, aka Eminem, dropped a whopping $462,000 on a BAYC NFT, which appears to be equipped with a green cap, a golden jacket, and a golden chain.
Why is BAYC Gaining So Much Popularity?
Well, there is no one simple answer to this question. From the start, BAYC had a clear road map to the future. These NFTs were sold out within 12 hours of initial listing. While the reasons for the popularity of these NFTs could be highly subjective, we consider them to be the following:
Celebrity involvement: Many celebrities, including Tyrese Halliburton, LaMelo ball, Stephen Curry, Justine Bieber, Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Neymar Jr, Jimmy Falcon, Logan Paul, etc., own these NFTs. Being a member of the BAYC is seen as a means to mingle with these celebrities. The owners of these NFTs have a separate discord server.
Commercial Utility: Most NFTs can be utilized for many purposes. They can be used as a profile picture or a metaverse character, and they can be accessed to play to earn games or as an option to sell an NFT in exchange for a desirable cryptocurrency. Many celebrities use their NFTs as their profile picture to show their fans what they possess. They are the new status symbol.
Return on Investment: Bored ape NFTs carry a hefty price. The NFTs that first sold for nearly 0.08 ETH are now trading at six figures. These NFTs have a return of over 100,000%. The most expensive bored ape NFT that goes by Bored ape #3749 was sold for 740 ETH. Bored Ape NFTs have been increasing in value with every passing day. Some treat them as an investment.
Engaging Community: The BAYC builds a community of members who interact and stay engaged. Yuga Labs, the entity behind the Boring Ape collection, has come up with their cryptocurrency called Ape Coin. They have further expanded their ecosystem by developing their metaverse (which goes by Otherside).
Yuga Labs has organized events to keep its owners engaged. They came up with initiatives like the Bored Ape Kennel Club (the owners were allowed to adopt a dog NFT with characteristics similar to their bored ape NFT) and Mutant Ape Yacht Club (the owners were given a virtual vial of mutant serum that would turn their bored ape NFT into a mutant ape NFT). The kernel and mutant ape were freebies given to the owners as membership bonuses, and these collectibles are currently worth a lot.
What’s Next?
The creators behind the BAYC were the people who founded the Yuga Labs. The tweet updates regarding the BAYC were made by their pseudonyms Gordon Goner and Gargamel (the founders) and their friends No Sass and Emperor Tomato Ketchup. The BAYC has organized meet-ups for its owners in New York and California. The BAYC get-togethers were held in Hong Kong and the UK.
BAYC has plans for its brand both in the virtual and real world. All bored ape NFT owners were airdropped about 10,000 Ape Coins in March 2022. These would be the primary currency for Otherside. Yuga labs launched their auction for land parcels for Otherside.
Yuga labs announced that they had acquired $450 million in a fundraising round, increasing their valuation to $4 billion. They also have collaborations with brands like Adidas and Gucci.
Considering all of the above, Yuga labs have a lot planned further for their members. They have been expanding their ecosystem with Ape coins and their metaverse. The craze for BAYC will likely continue to grow in the coming years.