A few investors claim the notoriously battered NFT sector is showing new signs after a dramatic decline. And this week, hordes of so-called crypto “goblins” are flocking to events across New York City to promote the non-fungible token.
NFT.NYC, which begins Tuesday at the Javits Center and ends Friday, will feature more than 800 speakers and more for close investors in NFTs (collectible, authenticated works of digital art, including “Bored Ape”). We held 100 events. And the “CryptoPunks” series.
According to Alex Taub, co-founder of the NFT collection Goblin Town, which refers to so-called “goblin” investors, 2022 has become a punch line among crypto skeptics that there will be massive booms and busts. Despite this, NFTs continue to attract steady interest. People who failed to buy cryptocurrencies and blew their cash.
Taub said Goblin Town's basic releases sell for between $500 and $1,000, but rare or unique NFTs can fetch prices in the six figures or more. The current lowest asking price is $492, but the most expensive sale price in the past 90 days was more than $11,000, according to NFTpricefloor.com.
“A lot of people say NFTs are dead, but in many ways NFTs are dead,” Taub, CEO of Truth Labs, told the Post. “But for the teams that are still around and building things, there's still a lot of value to be created.”
NFT enthusiasts remained undaunted even after the highly publicized collapse of convicted fraudster Sam Bankman Freed's FTX empire. At one point, the “floor price” for Bored Ape Yacht Club, perhaps the most popular NFT collection, plummeted 75% from over $400,000 in April 2022 to less than $100,000. It currently hovers at just over $39,000.
Overall, NFT prices are still well below their 2021 and 2022 peaks, according to NFT Price Floor COO Nicolas Lallman. While the initial surge in NFT popularity occurred on the Ethereum blockchain, new projects related to Bitcoin and Solana have seen a surge in transaction volumes.
“Although activity is still quite low compared to two years ago, there are signs of optimism, especially when it comes to high-end NFTs,” Larmento said, noting that two NFTs in the popular CryptoPunks collection recently sold for more than 1,500 each. He pointed out that it was sold for more than $10,000.
A Goblin Town-themed food truck named “McGoblin Burger” is making pit stops at several NFTs.NYC events. On Wednesday night, a group of depressed but not resigned crypto enthusiasts gathered in the pouring rain to eat scarf smash burgers outside Cellar Dog in the West Village.
“A lot of people in the crypto industry are saying, 'We're back,'” Taub said.
Taub said that apart from increasing brand awareness, the truck will serve as a hub for the project's close-knit community. They show up at crypto events wearing goblin masks in a strange display of solidarity.
NFT proponents face an uphill climb in convincing the general public. A report from dappGambl last year found that an astonishing 95% of NFT investments became worthless as cryptocurrencies bottomed out.
Over the course of this week, the price of Bitcoin has increased 53% since the beginning of the year, to more than $67,000. Ethereum, another popular digital currency closely associated with the NFT sector, rose 43% to $3,370.
“Regarding the market as a whole, the first thing to emphasize is that the crypto market is highly cyclical and capital tends to move towards new and shiny things,” Lariment added.
Goblin Town issued 10,000 NFTs for free just as the cryptocurrency sector meltdown began in mid-2022. Loosely inspired by JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit, the project has been poking fun at the volatility and skepticism inherent in crypto investing since its inception. The company's website initially joked that the founders had “no roadmap” and “no practicality.”
“We've seen it over and over again, where there's a rise, there's euphoria, and then there's a collapse, and everyone feels like this is over, and then they come back even stronger,” Taub said. “We do the same thing over and over and over again. We're right in that cycle.”
The conference attracted more than 16,000 attendees in 2022, but that number dropped to about 6,000 last year due to the Bitcoin collapse.
As reported by the Post, the surge in Bitcoin prices has a lot to do with the SEC's approval of spot ETFs, which was seen as a vote of confidence from skeptical regulators and encouraged a broader range of investors to embrace the cryptocurrency. Now available.
NFT.NYC organizers could not be reached for comment.
Taub said the co-founders decided to return the truck after receiving a positive response from their last appearance at NFT.NYC in 2022. “McGoblin Burger” is an integral part of the bizarre mythology of NFT projects.
Overall, the conference has a much more upbeat tone than it did just a year ago.
“I'm very excited. People are coming who weren't planning on coming. The atmosphere is upbeat and very strong on the positive side. It's less about 'we're all going to succeed' and more about 'cryptocurrency is inevitable.' That's the point,” Taub added.
