Sotheby’s to Auction Collection of Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs

The venerable British auction house estimates the sale of 101 NFTs will bring in $12 million to $18 million.

AccessTimeIconAug 31, 2021 at 4:04 p.m. UTC
Updated May 11, 2023 at 5:48 p.m. UTC
10 Years of Decentralizing the Future
May 29-31, 2024 - Austin, TexasThe biggest and most established global hub for everything crypto, blockchain and Web3.Register Now

Sotheby’s is bringing Bored Apes to the world of fine art.

The 277-year-old British auction house will be selling a collection of 101 Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) non-fungible tokens (NFTs) created by Yuga Labs in an auction running from Sept. 2-9. It will also offer a collection of 101 Bored Ape Kennel Club NFTs.

  • How Bitcoin and Ether's Options Contracts Combined Expiry Could Spike Volatility
    01:11
    How Bitcoin and Ether's Options Contracts Combined Expiry Could Spike Volatility
  • Over $1B in U.S. Treasury Notes Has Been Tokenized; FATF Calls for More Regions to Regulate Crypto
    02:04
    Over $1B in U.S. Treasury Notes Has Been Tokenized; FATF Calls for More Regions to Regulate Crypto
  • Moondance Labs CEO on 'Barriers of Entry' for Building Layer 1s
    01:28
    Moondance Labs CEO on 'Barriers of Entry' for Building Layer 1s
  • What Challenges Do Appchains Solve?
    00:59
    What Challenges Do Appchains Solve?
  • Sotheby’s estimates the BAYC sale will total $12 million to $18 million, while that for the Bored Ape Kennel Club will fetch $1.5 million to $2 million, according to a press release. Sotheby’s will accept ether, bitcoin and USDC as payment options for the auction, which will be facilitated through Coinbase Commerce.

    The Bored Apes Yacht Club is the second-most popular NFT collection by total trade volume (136,107 ETH) behind CryptoPunks, according to rarity.tools. The floor price at the time of writing for the cheapest available Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT on the open market is 48.8 ETH, or $165,578.

    Owners of the high-priced NFT collection include NBA superstar Steph Curry, YouTube creator Logan Paul and musician Jermaine Dupri.

    The winner of the Sotheby’s BAYC auction will also be awarded six “mutant serums,” which allow their owner to generate a new Mutant Ape NFT from one of the existing Bored Apes in the collection.

    UPDATE (August 31, 21:09 UTC): Updated with information about payment options in third paragraph.

    Disclosure

    Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.

    CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.

    Eli Tan

    Eli was a news reporter for CoinDesk. He holds ETH, SOL and AVAX.


    Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.