zycrypto.com
In March 2022, Iranian-born crypto entrepreneur Sina Estiva purchased a Non-Fungible Token (NFT) of Twitter founder Jack Dorsey’s first-ever tweet for a whopping $2.9 million(1630.6ETH). Today the tweet could sell for just under $97.
The so-called genesis tweet that reads “just setting up my twttr” was first sold to Estavi by Dorsey in an auction after beating Tron’s founder Justin Sun’s bid of $2,000,000 for the piece. Following the purchase, Estavi announced on Twitter that he planned on selling it and pledged to give half of its proceeds (about $25 million) to charity.
However, as fate would have it, the piece’s price flopped. At the close of the first auction in early April, the NFT managed to fetch only seven offerings with the highest bid at $0.09ETH which was roughly $277 at the time. Further, with the rout in the cryptocurrency market taking a toll on NFTs, Estavi’s piece continued to be bumped up by nominal bids. As of September 16, it had only managed to attract a top bid of 0.075ETH ($96.49)
Whereas the NFT has received multiple offers, Estavi remains unwilling to sell it. Previously, he has stated that he would accept a good offer or “might never sell it.” NFT collectors seem to have also lost interest in the rare piece, as seen in the long breaks between offers. Whereas some believe Estavi is to blame for “bad timing” and for placing such an unrealistically high price for the piece, he is not the only one who has suffered from the sharp drop in NFT prices.
Snoop Dogg, one of the several celebrities who publicly “aped in” during the hype of 2021, purchased an NFT nicknamed “Right Click and Save As Guy” for about $7 million (1600ETH) in December. Today, the same NFT would sell for about $2.08 million following Ethereum’s plunge.
On the other hand, pop Singer Justin Singer paid $1,301,550 (500ETH) for a Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) #3001 in January 2022. The piece would set the singer back by over half its original value if sold today.
With Ethereum plunging roughly 70% since November 2021, NFTs volumes have also dived. According to data from crypto data provider Alchemy, NFT marketplace activity had plunged by almost 90% by the close of Q3. NFT developer activity has remained high alongside growth in the wider crypto ecosystem. That said, given that most NFTs drew their high price tags due to hype, it will be difficult to predict whether they will reclaim their lost glory or sell at such high prices ever again.