Pudgy Penguins now the most expensive NFT collection

Cute, a little fat, always in a good mood: the NFT market has a new collection of stars, the Pudgy Penguins on Ethereum. Yesterday, March 21, they overtook the Bored Ape Yacht Club for the first time in terms of market capitalization.

Falling demand, falling prices: The Bored Ape Yacht Club crashed unprecedentedly after its hype in 2021. Then the monkey pictures went over the virtual counter for millions of US dollars, fueled by celebrities and the media. The entire NFT market crashed by 97 percent and trillions were wiped out. The market has since recovered.

The Pudgy Penguins were launched in 2021. Retail price: 0.03 Ethereum. They sold out within 20 minutes. There are currently 4,704 holders. Since then, the NFT project has established itself as a brand. Last year it was picked up by the New York Times and other mainstream media. Along with Walmart and Toys "R" Us, they sell stuffed penguins. They all have a QR code that gives access to their own metaverse. This is called Pudgy World and will launch in the first quarter of 2024.

Pudgy World was announced at Art Basel Miami in 2023. It is an open world game for NFT and toy owners in which you can complete quests and interact with friends.

The global daily trading volume of the NFT market is currently US$32 million.