Share this article
Nyan Dogecoin NFT Fetches $69K in ETH
A GIF cat with a DOGE body sold Thursday for 45 ETH.
Updated Sep 14, 2021, 12:22 p.m. Published Mar 5, 2021, 2:38 p.m.
Make us preferred on Google
A dogecoin-inspired non-fungible token (NFT) has sold for 45 ETH, roughly $69,000 at purchase, on the cryptocurrency art platform Foundation.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters
NFTs are a type of digital asset causing quite a stir these days. They provide proof of an artwork's scarcity via unique digital identifiers built on top of Ethereum and other blockchains.
The Nyan Dogecoin NFT, by Chris Torres, the same artist who created the Nyan Cat NFT, began its auction journey after first being minted in late February. Nyan Cat sold for an eye-popping 300 ETH (roughly $600,000 at purchase) on Feb. 19. (That same 300 ETH is now worth $451,000.)
Torres told CoinDesk via email his inspiration behind the Dogecoin NFT was based on the theme of "Luck."
"I wanted a bright and shiny coin for the piece, then decided to incorporate my style into the work," Torres said. "I also chose a drop date with as many lucky numbers as possible, even timed down to the drop (3:33pm)."
The Dogecoin NFT ultimately found a home with buyer Mondo, whose bio on Foundation states, "I've received 5000 ETH as a gift from my father back in early 2016 and then it all started…"
"Memes have always held great power," Torres said. "Some specific memes have been shared around the world millions of times and have become a part of our culture."
Torres sees NFTs as a way for memelords to monetize their creations more fairly.
See also: Digital Artwork Sells for Record-Breaking $6.6M in Ether on Winklevoss-Owned Marketplace
The Nyan Dogecoin sale joins a growing trend of NFT artwork being sold on a variety of marketplaces with some pieces fetching millions.
"Anything is worth what someone is willing to pay," meme artist Ryder Ripps told CoinDesk. Ripps is the self-declared creator of the popular 2010 meme graphic "deal with it."
Yeah, they are. 🕶️ @ryder_ripps https://t.co/kF0PUiRqZ0
— Foundation 🌐 (@withFND) March 4, 2021
According to Foundation data, Ripps' rights for the "deal with it" artwork sold for 15 ETH (roughly $22,500) on Thursday. The artist, however, compared NFTs to barcodes, such as those on soda bottles used to identify the item at checkout.
"I don't think you should buy something just because it has a barcode," said Ripps before conceding that Torres' Nyan Cat was worth a lot.
"These things are very culturally relevant," Ripps added.
Read more: Banksy Work Physically Burned and Digitized as NFT in Art-World First
More For You
Pudgy Penguins is building a multi-vertical consumer IP platform — combining phygital products, games, NFTs and PENGU to monetize culture at scale.
What to know:
Pudgy Penguins is emerging as one of the strongest NFT-native brands of this cycle, shifting from speculative “digital luxury goods” into a multi-vertical consumer IP platform. Its strategy is to acquire users through mainstream channels first; toys, retail partnerships and viral media, then onboard them into Web3 through games, NFTs and the PENGU token.
The ecosystem now spans phygital products (> $13M retail sales and >1M units sold), games and experiences (Pudgy Party surpassed 500k downloads in two weeks), and a widely distributed token (airdropped to 6M+ wallets). While the market is currently pricing Pudgy at a premium relative to traditional IP peers, sustained success depends on execution across retail expansion, gaming adoption and deeper token utility.
More For You
Tesla made no changes to bitcoin holdings in Q4 as it booked $239 million digital asset loss
The company's bitcoin stack remained at 11,509 coins, worth about $1 billion at BTC's current price near $89,000.
What to know:
- Tesla made no changes in its bitcoin holdings during the fourth quarter, continuing to hold 11,509 coins.
- The company recorded a $239 million after-tax mark-to-market loss on its digital assets due to bitcoin's decline from about $114,000 to $88,000 during the year's final three months.
Top Stories
