ShareThe NFT niche is one of the hottest crazes around today. People are paying big sums for what is a “one-of-a-kind” digital asset that can be bought and sold, but not exchanged like-for-like. Lots of companies are getting on this bandwagon that even includes poker’s very own Phil Ivey who is marketing his own products.
Cryptopunks are the original NFTs. A total of 10,000 24x24, 8-bit-style images were produced by Larva Labs three years ago, using a program that would generate the different looking characters.
Matt Hall and John Watkinson, founders of Larva Labs, were inspired by the early anti-establishment days of blockchain technology, in the same way that punk culture thrived in the United Kingdom in the 70s and 80s. “Misfits and non-conformists” were the order of the day.
So what's really happening here? Why are people paying so much for something which can be viewed, and even copied, by anybody else?
A piece of NFT art recently sold for $69m (£50m) at Christie’s Auction House and was immediately copied and shared. The owners are likely to consider their copy as the original, and in some way almost like an autographed copy that gives added value.
Cryptopunks are now being bought and sold under the same premise. The market is also extremely active, particularly with well known faces from the poker community helping to prop the sector up.
Massive Sales
Today, a total of 11,885 sales have been recorded for the preceding 12 months, at a combined value of $921.24 million. To put into context just how fast this space is growing, in April 2021 the total was $251.62 million.The most valuable character sold for $7.57 million in March of this year, and the cheapest one is now valued at $125,380.95.
As we all know, poker players in general are good at spotting early trends and getting in quickly. Cryptocurrency is a prime example; just look at Matt Kirk who is reputed to have made around $500 million from bitcoin investments.
Bill Perkins is one such character who has jumped in quickly. He now owns four cryptopunks, and no doubt sees them in the same way as his stocks and shares in his hedge fund portfolio. To him, cryptopunks are just a weird investment vehicle.
Mike McDonald is another face that has a reputation for being extremely quick on the uptake. The 31-year-old said:
“I think that with each year that passes the definition of what is gambling and what is investing move closer and closer together.”
A group of high-stakes poker players are now using their Punks as their social media avatars. There must be some extremely happy people who paid the early going prices of around $50, but there’s also those who have bought and sold efficiently too. 
High-Stakes Poker PlayersWho Own Cryptopunks
All players are displaying their punks proudly on their Twitter, with some owning multiple.
Do you know of any other big names in poker who are cashing in on the cryptopunk craze? Let us know in the email: info@highstakesdb.com.
