The floor price for the iconic NFT collection, just jumped 13% in three hours thanks to some rumors swirling around the potential sale of its intellectual property rights by Yuga Labs.
New business in the horizon?
It all started on January 14 when Wale.moca, a researcher from the NFT firm Azuki, dropped a bombshell on X and hinted that Yuga Labs might be in the process of selling the IP rights to CryptoPunks, which sent collectors and investors into a frenzy.
The floor price shot up from about 36.6 ETH to 41 ETH, worth over $130,000, almost overnight.
Now, Wale.moca didn’t spill the beans on who might be buying these rights, but he did clarify that it’s not a Web2 brand or any existing NFT company like Pudgy Penguins or Doodles.
So, who could it be? Right now, no one knows, and after all, we’re talking about a rumor. But if this sale goes through, it could shake up the entire NFT sector since CryptoPunks are currently the most valuable NFTs out there.
Market dominance
CryptoPunks boasts a market cap of around 414,700 ETH, about $1.3 billion, nearly double that of the second-place Pudgy Penguins.
Back in March 2022, Yuga Labs acquired the IP rights to these digital treasures from Larva Labs for an undisclosed amount when their floor price was around 65 ETH. Fast forward to now, and we’re seeing a near-37% drop from those heights.
But let’s not forget that Ethereum itself has gained over 24% in value since then, trading around $2,590 at that time.
So, while the floor price has fluctuated, the overall crypto market is still full of potential.
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What is an NFT, exactly? It seems not a property…
If Yuga Labs does sell the IP rights, it could redefine what ownership means in the NFT space.
Currently, while holders can sell and trade their CryptoPunks, they don’t own the underlying IP.
A new owner could change that dynamic entirely—imagine needing a licensing agreement just to create something based on your own NFT. What decentralization?
The community aspect is also pretty important here, because if the new IP owner is a group of NFT enthusiasts, they might want to preserve CryptoPunks’ legacy.
But if it’s someone else entirely? Well, that could steer the collection in a whole new direction.
This whole situation highlights just how complicated NFT ownership can be. Just because you buy an NFT doesn’t automatically mean you get all the rights associated with it, unless stated otherwise in the terms.
