CryptoPunks Floor Price Jumps 13% on Rumors Yuga Labs Might Be Selling the IP

The floor price of the CryptoPunks non-fungible token (NFT) collectibles saw a 13% surge in three hours amid rumors that its owner, Yuga Labs, might be “in the process” of selling the intellectual property (IP) rights to CryptoPunks.

The rumor was reported by “Wale.moca,” a researcher at NFT firm Azuki, who cited “several sources close to the matter” in a Jan. 14 X post.

He did not disclose the identity of the potential buyer but mentioned that it is not a Web2 brand or an existing NFT company like Pudgy Penguins, Azuki or Doodles.

Cointelegraph reached out to Yuga Labs for comment but did not receive an immediate response.

According to NFT Floor Price data, the CryptoPunks floor price rose from 36.6 Ether (ETH) (around $41,324) to 41 ETH — or over $130,000 — in the three hours following Wale.moca’s X post.

The sale of the IP rights would be a major development in the NFT industry, given that Yuga’s CryptoPunks are the most valued NFTs in the market.

Indian Railways to issue NFT tickets on Polygon for rare festivalThe CryptoPunks NFTs have a market capitalization of 414,700 ETH ($1.3 billion) — nearly double that of the second-place Pudgy Penguins NFTs, which stand at 213,080 ETH, as per NFT Price Floor.

A screenshot of CryptoPunks listed on the NFT marketplace OpenSea. Source: OpenSea

Yuga acquired the IP rights to 423 CryptoPunks NFTs from fellow NFT firm Larva Labs for an undisclosed sum in March 2022.

At the time, the CryptoPunks NFT floor price was around 65 ETH — a drop of nearly 37% from the current floor price.

However, ETH has risen by over 24% since then, trading at around $2,590 at the time, according to CoinGecko.

Yuga is also the company behind the Bored Ape Yacht Clubs, which are the third-most valuable collectibles in the NFT market.

Yuga’s co-founder Greg Solano returned as CEO to replace Daniel Alegre last February and made a “difficult” decision to carry out a round of layoffs two months later, highlighting a new direction for the company to return to its “creative-first spirit.”

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