Bieber's Ape Sings a 99% Loss Serenade: From Mooning to Crooning the Blues

Justin Bieber's Bored Ape #3001, acquired for a wallet-emptying 500 ETH back in early 2022, is now singing a sad tune valued at a mere ~$12,000. That's a near-total rug pull on his initial $1.3 million splash, proving that even pop stars aren't immune to buying the absolute top.

The celebrity, who owns one of crypto's most visible degen portfolios, snagged the pixelated primate when NFT euphoria was at its absolute, unhinged peak. On-chain sleuths noted he paid a legendary "ape in" premium, with similar JPEGs then trading for a comparatively sensible $200k to $300k.

With the highest current bid sitting at a paltry 5.9 ETH and the collection's floor barely holding at 6.15 ETH, Ethereum's price around $2,000 means those who FOMO'd in during the 2022 rally are staring down losses so steep they'd make a leverage trader blush.

Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), Yuga Labs' 10,000-piece generative cash cow, launched in April 2021 with a mint cost of 0.08 ETH and sold out faster than a fake Alpha call. By May 2022, floor prices had mooned to a ridiculous 128-145 ETH, roughly $350k-$420k at the time—a peak only sustainable on pure hopium.

Not content with one legendary bag-hold, Bieber also holds ape #3850, acquired for about $470,000 shortly after his first purchase, demonstrating a commitment to diamond-handing losses that would make any degen proud.

After the speculative bubble popped louder than a champagne cork, NFT trading volumes and floors crashed from their 2022 highs harder than a failed bridge exploit. The sector didn't vanish into the void, though. Builder energy has since pivoted toward utility-focused applications like in-game assets, access passes, and digital identity—basically trying to give these JPEGs a job.

Ethereum remains the dominant chain for high-value blue-chip NFTs, while Solana and Polygon have carved out their niches with the classic value propositions of lower fees and better scalability—the crypto equivalent of the budget airlines of the digital asset world.