The creators of the Bored Ape Yacht Club added Larva Labs’ star communities to its collection. We examine what this means for the future of the collections and its owners.
One year ago this week, Christie’s orchestrated the groundbreaking $69 million sale of Beeple’s NFT. His “Everydays: The First 5000 Days” introduced the majority of the population to the concept of digital collectibles — given the sheer dollar amount of the sale and the consensus confusion of what a non-fungible token actually was.
Since then, NFTs have become a cornerstone of the modern zeitgeist. From body parts to game-winners and artwork to concert access, they have taken multiple forms and presented a wide range of potential use cases.
There are countless collections that emerged, but two have risen to the top. Now, they are combining their powers. Yuga Labs, the creators of the Bored Ape Yacht Club, has announced that it struck a deal with Larva Labs to acquire the intellectual property and the collective holdings of the CryptoPunks and Meebits NFT Collections.
The partnership is a blockbuster success for the companies involved, but what are the implications for the collections and their owners?
Let’s dive in.
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In an official announcement, Yuga Labs acknowledged the acquisition of both the intellectual property and the actual holdings of 423 CryptoPunks and 1,711 Meebits. The company acknowledged the shared respect that it had for Larva Labs founders Matt Hall and John Watkinson:
“Their work moved NFTs, the Ethereum blockchain, and the entire crypto space forward, and influenced how we built BAYC. We’re honored to shepherd the CryptoPunks and Meebits brands into the future as part of the broader ecosystem we’re building. “
The agreement was facilitated in a conversation between Yuga Labs’ representation Guy Oseary and Hall and Watkinson.
The statement also laid out what the deal means for the future of both Yuga Labs and Larva Labs.
With the deal, Yuga Labs will enable owners to the commercial rights to the artwork, as they have done with the Bored Ape and Mutant Ape collections. As a result, the owners profit from their holdings’ likeness through the creation of various goods and products.
While the future may enable some serious profits, community lies at the heart of the collections. The statement concludes by saying:
Our vision has always been to build a community-owned brand that extends far beyond NFTs, and now we get to bring CryptoPunks and Meebits along for the ride.
One major NFT collector has already expressed his intentions to create a new game with the unlocking of the commercial rights. GMoney, who is known exclusively by his CryptoPunk avatar, has popped up everywhere from the new Adidas metaverse campaign to the Prada runway in Milan. He took to Instagram on Saturday to announce that he’ll be launching a game on the blockchain on Monday.
Beyond GMoney, CryptoPunks and Bored Apes have emerged as the hottest digital accessory on the market. Serena Williams, Neymar Jr., and so many more have adopted an online avatar to reflect their highly coveted virtual holdings. And with floor prices for the two prized collections hovering just around $200,000, the entry fee to this exclusive club isn’t cheap.
However, with the recent news, owners will be able to potentially recoup some of the astronomical costs. What could this mean for the future of the collections? Only time will tell.
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