What are the top NFT collections?
There are three NFT collections that are deemed to be the most prestigious, notable, and valuable.
CryptoPunks
Created in June 2017, CryptoPunks is an NFT collection of 10,000 pixel-art avatars created by John Watkinson and Matt Hall, known as Larva Labs. Each CryptoPunk NFT was randomly-generated, with each having unique attributes and traits.
Originally free-to-claim, CryptoPunks is now the most valuable NFT collection in the world. Their holders include A-list celebrities, major venture capitalist firms, and leading museums and galleries – with the likes of Sotheby’s and Christie’s having held multiple CryptoPunk auctions.
The management of the CryptoPunks NFT collection was purchased by Yuga Labs in March 2022.
Bored Ape Yacht Club
Created in April 2021, Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) is an NFT collection of 10,000 stylised ape avatars, created by Yuga Labs. Like CryptoPunks, each Bored Ape was randomly-generated from a set of unique attributes and traits.
Minted at a price of 0.08 ETH each, BAYC is now the second most valuable NFT collection in the world. Notable holders include the likes of Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Justin Bieber and Paris Hilton.
Yuga Labs have created several derivative NFT projects around BAYC, including the 20,000-piece Mutant Ape Yacht Club (MAYC) NFT collection, the Bored Ape Kennel Club (BAKC) NFT collection, metaverse project Otherside, and initiatives such as the ApeCoin DAO.
Pudgy Penguins
Created in July 2021, Pudgy Penguins is an NFT collection of 8,888 stylised penguins avatars, created by a cohort of four college students. As with CryptoPunks and BAYC, each Pudgy Penguins was randomly-generated from a series of defined traits and attributes.
Minted at a price of 0.03 ETH each, Pudgy Penguins is now the third most valuable NFT collection in the world. Pudgy Penguins initially saw limited success, until management of the NFT collection was purchased by Luca Netz in April 2022.
Since then, Pudgy Penguins have exploded into mainstream popularity. Pudgy Penguins has over 2 million followers on Instagram and almost 500,000 on TikTok, with their animated shorts receiving hundreds of millions of views. This led to a nationwide toy distribution deal in the U.S. via Walmart and Target.