The top 10 NFT sales of 2022 seem like they’re from a distant past. Many centralized exchange collapses weren’t yet on the radar, Ethereum was over $2K, and many of us were celebrating unrealized profits instead of actually taking them. But believe it or not, these multi-million dollar jpeg sales all happened within this calendar year.
Most striking but perhaps not surprising is that most of this list are assets from Yuga Labs, who acquired CryptoPunks from Larva Labs in March 2022. The Bored Ape Yacht Club creators continue to dominate Ethereum NFT volume, even in bear market conditions.
Note: When digging through the top NFT sales across blockchains, I excluded blatant wash trades and sales to DAOs (like Pak’s Clock which sold for $52.7 million to AssangeDAO). All of these are also on-chain. In addition, these are ranked by USD value at the time of the sale.
10. Bored Ape Yacht Club #232
Sale Date: January 30, 2022
USD Value at Sale Time: $2,693,289 (1,080 ETH)
Buyer: dt_chain
Seller: QuotidianFool
Chain CEO Deepak Thapliyal bought this gold ape from QuotidianFool for a small fortune in early 2022. QuotidianFool was the original minter of the ape, so they spent about $200 (.08 Eth) on this investment.
There are only 46 Solid Gold fur apes out of 10,000. This sale is the third-highest ever BAYC sale at the time of this post. It happened on then-new NFT marketplace LooksRare, earning Deepak 6,082 $LOOKS tokens, worth $25,695 at the time.
Where is Ape #232 now?
This rare solid gold ape has a new owner, Keung, who bought it for 800 Eth (a little over $1M USD) in November from Deepak. Unfortunately, the Chain CEO had lost a large amount of funds in the FTX collapse, and had to sell many of his incredible NFT assets to recoup them.
9. CryptoPunk #2681
Sale Date: January 6, 2022
USD Value at Sale Time: $3,071,979 (900 ETH)
Buyer: MoonPay
Seller: punk2681
Punk2681 bought this punk for 277 Eth in February 2021, which was equal to $539K USD at the time. In early January, MoonPay invested in this rare CryptoPunk by buying it for $3M USD. This is one of 88 Zombie punks out of the 10,000 in the collection.
MoonPay has been brokering large NFT sales for celebrities with its concierge service, but this was the first Punk they bought.
Where is Punk #2681 now?
Still with MoonPay, alone in a wallet, perhaps awaiting its celebrity owner.
8. CryptoPunk #7121
Sale Date: January 30, 2022
USD Value at Sale Time: $3,083,870 (1,180ETH)
Buyer: Punk6529 Fund
Seller: Hanzombie.eth
On the same exact day that the Chain CEO bought a Bored Ape for $2.7M, punk6529’s fund bought this Zombie punk for $3M. This is one of 88 rare Zombie cryptopunks.
Where is Punk #7121 now?
Still in the Punk6529 fund wallet.
7. CryptoPunk #7756
Sale Date: April 13, 2022
USD Value at Sale Time: $3,233,244 (1,050 ETH)
Buyer: Jamie
Seller: cry.eth
This Zombie punk was bought by Cry.eth in 2020 for $9,261. They sold it this year for $3.2 million.
Where is Punk #7756 now?
Still in the buyer’s wallet.
6. CryptoPunk #4156
Sale Date: July 15, 2022
USD Value at Sale Time: $3,312,002 (2,691 ETH)
Buyer: Anonymous
Seller: punk4156
This Ape bandana punk is one of only 24 Ape punks in the 10,000 collection. The previous owner punk4156 had spent a whopping $10 million on this rare NFT in December 2021. They sold it for $3.3 million 7 months later.
Where is Punk #4156 now?
Still in the buyer’s wallet alongside a wild amount of other CryptoPunks.
5. CryptoPunk #2924
Sale Date: September 28, 2022
USD Value at Sale Time: $4,451,633 (3,300 ETH)
Buyer: Anonymous
Seller: Seedphrase
Seedphrase outbid Pranksy in November 2020 to buy this rare Ape hoodie punk for $71,403. It is one of 24 Apes in the NFT collection. Two years later, they sold it for $4.4 million.
Where is Punk #2924 now?
Still in the buyer’s wallet.
4. Mega Mutant Serum
Sale Date: September 28, 2022
USD Value at Sale Time: $5,760,321 (1,542 ETH)
Buyer: Fragmentxyz
Seller: Cryptobeaker
Serums were airdropped to holders of Bored Ape Yacht Club, which had three levels: M1, M2, and Mega. There is now only one Mega serum left, which are burned to create ultra-rare 1 of 1 mutant apes.
Cryptobeaker was randomly airdropped this serum for free, and Fragmentxyz bought it for $5.7 million.
Where is the serum now?
In June, Fragmentxyz burned the serum to create the only Mega Gold mutant (30006), which they still own. Their wallet also holds a 1/1 Mega Death Bot mutant ape.
3. All Time High in the City by XCOPY
Sale Date: January 2, 2022
USD Value at Sale Time: $6,100,000 (1,630 ETH)
Buyer: “rarecollector3000” on SuperRare
Seller: “superrare8888” on SuperRare
XCOPY is a crypto art pioneer. This animated artwork, which was released in 2018, depicts an underworld ferryman transporting a man across the river Styx. The buyer and seller are anonymous, but it was sold for over $6 million on the art platform SuperRare.
Another XCOPY work, “Right Click Save As Guy,” sold in late 2021 for $7 million.
Where is the XCOPY piece now?
Still in the buyer’s wallet.
2. CryptoPunk #5577
Sale Date: February 9, 2022
USD Value at Sale Time: $7,704,080 (2,500 ETH)
Buyer: rleshner
Seller: straybits1
This Ape cowboy hat punk is one of 24 Ape CryptoPunks. The seller Straybits1 seems to be the original claimer for this ultra rare Punk, way back in 2017. He bid it a fond farewell on Twitter when it sold for $7.7 million, the third-highest Punk sale ever.
Where is Punk #5577 now?
Still in the buyer’s wallet.
1. CryptoPunk #5822
Sale Date: February 12, 2022
USD Value at Sale Time: $23,702,160 (8,000 ETH)
Buyer: dt_chain
Seller: Anonymous
In what may be the highest on-chain NFT sale of all time, this Alien punk sold for a stunning $23 million. Out of 10,000 CryptoPunks, there are only 9 Aliens. It was sold to the CEO of Chain, Deepak Thapliyal, who also bought the rare gold ape in this list.
The anonymous seller held paid $1,646 for it in 2017 and held it for 4 years, 7 months, and 3 days. Talk about the ultimate HODL.
Where is Punk #5577 now?
Still in the buyer’s wallet. He offered it for sale for as little as $10 million in June, but now seems to be holding onto it.
Summary
Many of us may be happy to see 2022 come to an end, but some of the biggest NFT sales of all time happened this year. Even in a post-FTX and Celsius world, buyers seeking digital status symbols are spending big bucks on PFPs and digital art.
Those who invested millions on rare NFTs in 2022 believe that in the coming years, they will become even more scarce and sought-after. Time will tell to see if these mega-investments will pay off.
