Remember when NFTs were the hottest thing in tech and celebrities were throwing millions at cartoon apes? Well, pop star Justin Bieber does, and he probably wishes he didn't. In January 2022, Bieber dropped 500 ETH—roughly $1.3 million at the time—on Bored Ape Yacht Club #3001. Today, that same digital asset is valued at around $12,000. That's a 99% haircut, if you're keeping score at home.

When Even Your Ape Isn't That Special

The NFT was criticized from day one. It didn't have rare features that typically command premium prices in the Bored Ape ecosystem. Farokh Sarmad, president of Dastan, captured the market's bewilderment at the time: "Who is advising Justin Bieber's NFT purchases and how can I get in touch to sell them floors NFTs for 500 ETH."

Bieber wasn't alone in making eye-popping NFT purchases during the boom. Artist Beeple famously sold a digital art NFT for $69.3 million a year earlier, according to Decrypt. But the market has since cooled dramatically, affecting not just Bored Apes but also collections like CryptoPunks and Pudgy Penguins. What once traded at stratospheric values now has far more modest floor prices.

The NFT Winter Shows No Signs of Thawing

The wild swings in NFT valuations come down to market sentiment and the perceived rarity of specific attributes. What we're seeing now is part of a broader "NFT winter" that, according to Decrypt, isn't showing signs of ending anytime soon. Prediction markets like Myriad, operated by Dastan, reflect this pessimism, assigning low odds to any significant price recovery in the near future.

Yuga Labs Keeps Building

Despite the brutal market conditions, Yuga Labs—the company behind Bored Ape Yacht Club—isn't standing still. In October, they announced plans to open a physical Bored Ape clubhouse in Miami, creating a real-world gathering spot for NFT holders. They're also developing Otherside, a multiplayer metaverse game featuring avatars from various NFT projects, betting that expanding utility and community engagement can sustain their digital empire through the downturn.