Non-fungible tokens have been the hottest trend in 2021. They saw global recognition, mainstream adoption, and overall acceptance in and out of the cryptocurrency industry. The astronomic surge in popularity of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) led to a massive demand (and an even higher supply) of various collections, each one with its intricacies and perks.
Undoubtedly, one of the most popular NFT collections, which even became the most expensive in terms of floor price, is the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC). But first, let’s take a look at what it is and how many BAYC are there.
What is Bored Ape Yacht Club and How Many BAYC are There?
The Bored Ape Yacht Club is a club unlike any other. It’s a virtual lounge reserved only for its members, and there will never be more than 10,000 given that BAYC is a collection of 10,000 Bored Ape NFTs. These represent unique digital collectibles built on top of ETHereum’s blockchain.
Each Bored Ape also gives its owner membership to the club and grants access to some benefits that are dedicated to the selected few. Each NFT has its unique traits such as clothing, headwear, expression, and more. Just as other NFTs on ETHereum, these are stored as ERC-721 tokens.
As of writing these lines, they have grown to become the most popular profile picture (PFP) NFT project, and multiple celebrities have already bought and used them for this exact purpose.
Why do People Buy Bored Apes?
One of the perks of owning a Bored Ape NFT is access to the so-called bathroom which is essentially a virtual hangout place with a canvas that’s accessible only to wallets that contain at least one ape. This is where owners can draw, write expletives, or do whatever they see fit. Every ape-holder is allowed to paint a pixel on the bathroom wall every fifteen minutes. Essentially, buying an ape NFT makes the owner a member of an exclusive club that has a membership cap.
In addition, owning a high-prized NFT and one that’s recognized within a community is much like buying a valuable painting. Its value is derived from the subjective worth of what it means for the owner himself. And remember – each Bored Ape NFT is completely unique, and there will never be a second one like it.
Last but not least, some of the users who buy these NFTs look at them as an investment. There’s a finite supply of them on the market, and as they might continue growing, they could also get more expensive, thus becoming a worthwhile investment.
Who Created BAYC?
The Bored Ape Yacht Club was launched by anonymous developers that go by the pseudonyms Gargamel, Gordon Goner, Emperor Tomato Ketchup, and No Sass. There’s also an entity that took responsibility for the creation of BAYC called Yuga Labs.
The story of BAYC is actually quite interesting. On April 23rd, Gordon Goner – one of the project’s creators, announced the pre-sale launch on Discord. The announcement itself was met with almost no reactions.
Only about a few hundred apes during the week and, it’s worth noting, that their owners hadn’t yet seen their NFTs and how they looked. On April 30th, the reveal happened, and once people saw the art, the collection spread like wildfire, and all apes were sold a day later at a price of 0.08ETH each. 30 apes were saved for the team members, giveaways, and promotions.
How to Buy Bored Ape NFTs?
As mentioned above, Bored Ape NFTs were first minted at a price of 0.08 ETH each, but that was only available for a short period of time upon the project’s launch. Now, the only way to buy them is on secondary marketplaces, and the most popular one is OpenSea.
To buy a Bored Ape NFT, you would have to visit OpenSea and connect your MetaMask wallet. Once there, find the Bored Ape Yacht Club collection in the search bar, and you can start browsing. Once you select the ape that you want to buy, you need to click on the image which will take you to a separate window where you can place your bid. If the seller accepts your bid, the NFT will be transferred to your address.
Closing Thoughts
Bored Ape Yacht Club has established itself as a blue chip NFT brand, through innovation and exclusive membership perks. Access to meetup events, airdrops and exclusive games has proven that utility is just as important to NFT owners as rarity. Now that you know how many BAYC are there, will you be the next one to ape in?
