Bored Ape investor sells NFT at $388K loss
Digital artist Ryder Ripps has sold his Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT (#3707) for $37,000, nearly $388,000 less than the $425,000 he originally paid.
The sale once again tells about the dramatic decline of once-prestigious NFT collections and the fading luster of speculative hype.
Ripps, who was among the early believers in NFTs as “culture” and “the future of the internet,” described the sale as both painful and symbolic. “No utility. No community. No handshake. Just a picture of a monkey that cost me a house,” he wrote, reflecting on his disillusionment after years of holding the token.
Ripps, who was among the early believers in NFTs as “culture” and “the future of the internet,” described the sale as both painful and symbolic. “No utility. No community. No handshake. Just a picture of a monkey that cost me a house,” he wrote, reflecting on his disillusionment after years of holding the token.
Bored Ape Yacht Club, once the poster child of crypto culture, has seen its floor price collapse. The cheapest Apes now trade between 9–11 ETH (around $39,000–$40,000), down from peaks near 75 ETH (over $215,000) during the 2021-22 boom. Once marketed as exclusive passes to celebrity-backed communities and digital prestige, Apes have struggled to retain value as speculative demand cooled.
The broader NFT sector remains far below its euphoric highs. Global NFT sales in the first half of 2025 totaled $2.82 billion, a modest drop from last year, even as transaction volumes grew 78%, according to DappRadar. Analysts say the sector is gradually maturing: investors are shifting focus from expensive profile pictures to gaming assets, tokenized real-world items, and NFTs tied to utility.
Some forecasts suggest the NFT market could rebound toward $60–$70 billion in annual turnover by year-end, though momentum is uneven. While infrastructure players like OpenSea are improving services and real-world tokenization gains traction, blue-chip collections like BAYC continue to lose ground.
The broader NFT sector remains far below its euphoric highs. Global NFT sales in the first half of 2025 totaled $2.82 billion, a modest drop from last year, even as transaction volumes grew 78%, according to DappRadar. Analysts say the sector is gradually maturing: investors are shifting focus from expensive profile pictures to gaming assets, tokenized real-world items, and NFTs tied to utility.
Some forecasts suggest the NFT market could rebound toward $60–$70 billion in annual turnover by year-end, though momentum is uneven. While infrastructure players like OpenSea are improving services and real-world tokenization gains traction, blue-chip collections like BAYC continue to lose ground.
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Has been exploring the enigmas of the crypto industry since 2017, transforming them into accessible narratives. Relies on dark chocolate and nuts as a secret source of energy and inspiration.
