The popularity of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) has risen to new highs this year. These intangible digital assets – representing unique virtual items such as images, videos, etc. – have taken the art world by storm. Now a unique set of 101 Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs has sold for a staggering $24.4 million (approximately Rs 179.2 crores) at Sotheby’s auction house. These cartoons represent 1 percent of the total Bored Apes collection. The NFT set features colorful cartoon monkeys. The apes have a variety of facial expressions that are shown when wearing different accessories and clothing.
There is also an option to create six new mutants. The cartoon images of bored apes are from the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT collection designed by a US-based company Yuga Labs. This is a complete set of about 10,000 computer-generated animations.
In a tweet, Sotheby’s said it was the “most important” Bored Ape Yacht Club sale to date.
#AuctionUpdate 101 Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs Just Sold For $24.4 Million And 101 Bored Ape Kennel Club NFTs Reached $1.8 Million In Our Ape In! Auction – most important #BAYC sold so far. Congratulations to all the tailless monkeys???????? pic.twitter.com/e7UghlgtKy
– Sotheby’s (@Sothebys) September 9, 2021
According to a Sotheby’s release, Yuga Labs, the creators of Bored Ape NFT, has started the auction. The initial predicted price for NFTs is between $12 million and $18 million.
In a tweet from its official handle, the Bored Ape Yacht Club said it was a “historic moment for the club”, and congratulated and thanked “the entire apes community”. It added, “For buyers, I think we speak for everyone when we say: WELCOME TO THE CLUB.”
What a historic moment for the club: @Sothebys Auction of 101 tailless monkeys ended with over $24 million. Congratulations and THANKS to the entire ape community. To the buyer, I think we speak for everyone when we say: WELCOME TO THE CLUB. ️ ???? ️ pic.twitter.com/NKxHekC0ny
– Bored Ape Yacht Club (@BoredApeYC) September 9, 2021
Buyers of ‘Bored Apes’ also have intellectual property rights. This collection of 101 Bored Ape Yacht Clubs includes monkeys with various clothing accessories, solid gold or three-piece fur, unshaven faces, pizza hanging from their mouths, etc.
This year, the NFT frenzy has reached new highs. In May, CryptoPunk NFTs created a stir when a set of 9 sold for a staggering $16.9 million (approximately Rs 124.2 crores) in an auction at Christie’s. Previously, in March, digital artist Beeple sold a jpeg photo for $69 million (about Rs 506.6 crores).
Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs are the latest web characters to sell for millions.
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