Investing in expensive NFTs- Risk or an Investment?
Read this article till the very end about some of the most expensive NFT sold and if they are worth investing your money in.
The Most Expensive NFT sold
Here are some of the most expensive NFT sold in the market including a few details about them, just so you know if they will interest you enough to invest your money in the market on them-
1. Beeple, every day: The First 5000 days
$69.3 million
Starting with the most popular and the most expensive NFT sold for the first time in the NFT market. It was with Beeple that the NFT market started growing. It came into the investors’ hindsight when for the first time an NFT was sold in millions. Beeple brought the NFT market into mainstream concern.
But what is it that made this NFT go on to be the most expensive NFT sold for the first time in the market? As the name suggests Beeple consists of 5000 pieces, each made by Beeple every single day for 13 years. It shows the evolving style of the artists and how the technology that we have in our hands can be stretched to a limit so far that it could result in a marvelous art piece. Each day in the artwork represents a unique day in the life of the artist. It is based on different themes and emotions in very minute detail.
The significance of this artwork was that it brought hope to the digital artists in a way that before 5000 days were sold, NFT art was considered something that people would do only as a hobby but after this artwork was sold, the NFT market came into the mainstream view of the investors, it increased the prospects of the success of digital art by manyfold and there was hope that NFTs would continue to be sold at a similar price or higher which they did.
Read until the end of the article to know which NFT was sold for more than 5000 days.
2. Julian Assange and Pak, Clock
$52.8 million
Clock has an interesting history to account for. This single NFT counts the number of days that the founder of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, has been in jail. This was done to raise funds for Julian Assange’s Legal Defence. It is also a symbol to advocate for the freedom of information when it was auctioned on the Blockchain technology. Pak, a pseudonymous artist, created this clock to bring attention and provide details to NFT art which led to it becoming one of the most expensive NFT sold in the NFT world.
It brings attention to the plight of Julian Assange in jail. It serves as an artistic statement and a political statement. It was purchased by the AssangeDAO group to fund Julian Assange’s release.
This art piece also shows how technology, art, and activism can sometimes mix and bring about a beautiful piece of art.
3. Beeple, Human One
$28.9 million
This is the third most expensive NFT sold in the market. It is the story of the first human born in Metverse. It beautifully merges traditional and digital artwork with its beautiful concept and gives justice to its ideation.
There was a proper bidding war for the sale of this artwork and the highest bidder paid $28.9 million for this masterpiece. Another feature that makes this NFT distinctly unique is that it is a mix of NFT and electronic sculpture making it one-of-a-kind and worth the money spent on it.
Human One made the particular statement very clear that NFT art does not just comprise animations and pixelated figures, which we will be talking about later, but also art that could compete with physical art in terms of its realness.
This artwork was the second most expensive piece by Beeple and that is why people were waiting starry-eyed for the results of the auction of Human One. Once again Beeple gave NFTs a little push towards the mainstream of cryptocurrencies.
No matter how impossible it seemed to the investors for the sale of Human One to be a successful one, it proved to be the third-largest sale made and moreover, it increased the fame of the artists solidifying the fact that NFT art can also be more than just a hobby.
You can find more NFTs by Beeple on NFT LinkShare which is an up-and-coming site for your NFT investments.
4. CryptoPunk #7804
$7.56 million
One of the most expensive NFT sold and one of its nine kinds, this piece from the CryptoPunk collection carries a large value because of its “alien appearance”. CryptoPunk collection is one of the most popular collections in the NFT world. It has 10,000 pieces in existence which makes it a rare collection in itself. The basic concept of the CryptoPunk collection consists of different pixelated characters differentiated only by their accessories.
This piece from the collection has a cigar in the mouth with a hat on the head representing a very savage character from the movies just the villains. According to OpeanSea. An online NFT marketplace, there has been only one purchase of this NFT since it was sold for $7.56 million but there have been other listings that were also on the expensive side.
5. CryptoPunk #5822
$23.7 million
This is the most expensive CryptoPunk that has ever been sold in the NFT market. It is a unique piece being one of the nine similar punks in the collection. It has a blue bandana on its head along with its alien features. It was purchased by Deepak Thapliyal who is the CEO of the chain.
After the purchase, Deepak Thapliyal tweeted a picture of it. The amount paid for this piece is justified because of the intricate artistry and the detail with which it has been made. When you have the money for it, it feels like something different when you own a unique piece of art which justifies it being one of the most expensive NFTs sold. Something else that justifies the high price of this CryptoPunk is the sense of individuality that it portrays and the uniqueness of its artistic expression.
6. CryptoPunk #7523
$11.7 million
Crafted by Matt Hall and John Watkinson, the directors of Larva Labs, CryptoPunk #7523 was the former most expensive CryptoPunk NFT. It was sold for $ 11.75 million making it one of the most expensive NFT sold.
For the most part, the price of this piece is because of its unique qualities. Firstly, it is one of the nine kinds and therefore, very rare to find. Secondly, its alien appearance is enhanced further because of the surgical mask on the face which represents the pandemic that this entire world suffered from. These features lead to its rarity and define the high market value that it has gained in the NFT world. Therefore, it is one of the most expensive NFT sold and it has justified the very cause of it.
NFT LinkShare gives you options for CryptoPunk purchases as you go about exploring your purchase in NFTs.
7. TPunk #3442
$10.5 million
This NFT art piece was bought by Tron Founder Justin Sun for $10.5 million who originally planned on buying the Everyday: First 5000 days by Beeple but was outbid by an amount of $250,000 at the last minute.
This piece is also known as “Joker”. Other than this piece, TPunk has a lot of other options in the market as well. They have 10,000 pieces of art and that makes them even more legible. There are other derivative pieces of the Joker but this one is the one sold for the highest amount and has the legitimacy.
It has captivated a lot of investors with its intricate colors and unique theme. It was inspired by CryptoPunk but did not plagiarise it in any way. It is one of the most expensive NFT sold in the NFt world and it has turned around the meaning of NFT art to musings, which means that NFT art is not just random characters but also requires musings and inspiration to develop into something iconic like the TPUNK #3442.
TPunk is the most expensive NFT sold on the Tron Blockchain which further enhances its position in the NFT market. Just like Ethereum Blockchain has become extremely popular and trustworthy, the Tron Blockchain is also coming up as software that can attract high-value transactions with trustworthy pieces, enhancing its legitimacy.
TPunk also signifies how with time, the NFT market is getting more and more accepted into the mainstream cryptocurrency world.
8. CryptoPunk #5577
$7.7 million
Like other CryptoPunk pieces, this has also resulted in a great investment for the collector Robert Leshner. It was bought in February 2022. Unlike the other CryptoPunk pieces that we have mentioned in the article now, this one is part of a 24-ape-punk collection. There are only 142 pieces that feature the iconic cowboy hat style.
9. PAK, The Merge
$91.8 million
We saved the most expensive NFT sold till now for the last. The merge was an NFT created by PAK, a pseudonymous artist, which was sold for $91.8 million. This is the highest amount that anyone has ever paid for an NFT. It is an extraordinary event in the world of digital art or collectibles and increased their value to manyfold bringing it to the attention of many investors. This NFT got attention from over 28,000 collectors and was well sought-after.
PAK made this NFT keeping in mind the growing relationship between technology and our daily lives. It gives us something to think about. Technology is rapidly intersecting with our world and changing the way that we think about things, and we use technology to shape the world around us. This art piece has brought about a major change in how we view NFT art. This piece has given us a lot of introspection about the changing world around us gaining popularity every day.
It is a groundbreaking world that the collectors agreed to fight over in the auction before it was sold between December 2 and 4, 2021. It was sold on the online marketplace Nifty Gateway. Another fascinating fact about this NFT is that it was divided into 3,12,686 coins so that more and more people could buy and it was bought by 29,983 people. It has tried to intersect both the world of art as well as the NFT Landscape. Therefore, it justifies every reason as being the most expensive NFT sold.
Are NFTs Worth Anything?
The high-profile NFT sales that were made were made a long time ago, in 2022 and 2021. Therefore, people have concluded that NFTs are worthless and they are probably a scam and have lost their value.
But in reality, the NFT market has started focusing on things that it was meant to celebrate, which are artistic expression, ownership of collectibles, unique digital assets, and their utility. So if you are a person who is interested in collectibles, digital arts, or ownership of digital assets, the NFT market is meant for you.
With every million worth of sales, you might think that you won’t be able to top it but you need to know that NFTs are here to pave a new way for artistic expression and art is always subjective. It is opening a new stage for people who want to explore their art.
The unique ownership factor does play a huge role in deciding that the NFTs are still as valuable as they were before. With Blockchain technology, NFTs are free of plagiarism, and no one can replicate what has already been made. Along with this, the ownership history of the NFTs plays a major role in deciding their value.
Since every transaction is recorded on Blockchain technology, it tells us how the data has been passed down from one owner to the other including the public addresses of the owners. So if a celebrity or a popular person owned an NFT before, its value would increase manyfold for the next owner.
If you are looking to invest in NFTs, NFT LinkShare is one of the best sites that you can hop onto, to explore various NFTs available to invest in and make your decision.
Wrapping it Up!
The NFT market is continuing to grow, it is maturing with the ways in which it has started to focus on things that it was really built for. But as the market grows we know that digital assets have an immense value and every creator that has invested in it has done it because they are truly valuable. In this article, we talked about the most expensive NFT sold. The rarer the NFTs are, the more value they gain.
For example, if a rare collection of CryptoKitties’ digital cats is bought by someone then a smaller amount of them are available for other people to buy, and thus their value increases. There is a high demand for NFTs and a limited supply. As their popularity has been increasing, more collectors are willing to invest in them and therefore, their prices are continuously getting hicked up.
There are a few frequently asked questions answered below:
Who is the biggest NFT buyer?
One of the biggest NFT collectors was Beeple whose real name is Mike Winkelmann. His artwork has been sold for $ 69 million which is one of the most expensive NFT sold and we have talked about it in the article above. Another prominent NFT collector was Mark Cuban who was an early buyer and promoter of NFT.
What is the most famous NFT?
The most famous NFT is Everyday: First 5000 Days by Beeple which was sold for $69 million. This was the first NFT to be sold in millions and it brought the NFT market into the mainstream of cryptocurrencies. Beeple also had other NFTs that were sold for a higher price and they come into the list of the most expensive NFT sold.
Is there really a future in NFT?
The NFT market in fact has seen growth in recent times from various businesses and high-value customers. A lot of brands like the Premier League, McDonald’s, and Louis Vuitton have announced plans for their NFTs in 2024. There is still an opportunity for the NFT market to evolve and therefore, there is still a future for the NFTs.
Who owns NFT?
The ownership of an NFT is recorded in Blockchain. It can be transferred by the owner to some other person depending on the value that they are offering or any other factor, allowing NFT to be sold or traded even. Initially, NFTs were pitched as a class investment value but slowly their value started to decrease to only the NFTs that really did represent art and what the NFT world stands for.
Who sets the NFT price?
There is no set price for an NFT. The creator can fix a price for their own NFT and sell it at that. This also results in the risk that you are taking to invest in an NFT because you can change the price of it as per your choice and so can the person who will buy it next. And therefore, the price of NFTs keeps on fluctuating.
