NFT traders lose $10 million after selling rare alien encrypted postal

An anonymous NFT collector lost $10 million after selling one of the rarest cryptocurrencies on Thursday.

Data on the chain shows that Punk #3100 changes hands 4,000 ETH, converted to about $6.07 million through private deals on the official Cryptopunks Marketplace.

NFT is one of only nine alien punks in the initial 10,000-piece cryptocurrency series created by Larva Labs in 2017. Alien punk recognized for its unique blue skin and headscarf is part of the most popular group in the NFT space.

A loss of $10 million

Arkham Intelligence’s blockchain data suggests that this particular NFT was previously sold at 4,500 ETH in March last year and then valued at over $16 million. The sale ranks third by dollar value and is the third most expensive single FFT transaction. Just a few days later, Punk #7804 exchanged 4,850 ETH at the time, with a value of approximately $16.42 million, the second largest deal in the series’ history.

But, as Ethereum’s price declines over $6 million on Thursday, selling over $10 million from the deal, caused sellers to lose $10 million from the deal.

While the parties in the exchange remain unidentified, Ethiban records show that the purchase of the wallet received 4,001 ETH from an account marked “Coinbase Prime 2” shortly before the sale.

Alien Crypto Post continues to dominate the NFT market. They are the rarest genre in the series, with even more than 88 zombie punks or 24 ape punks. The top seven on-chain cryptocurrency sales involved these variants.

Crypto stamps hit by market downturn

Despite their status, crypto cruise ships are not immune to the wider downturn in the NFT market. Data from the NFT price platform suggests that their asking price has dropped nearly 43% over the past three months and is currently at $71,031. This number marks a significant decline in the series during its November 2021 peak, when the figure exceeded $400,000.

Originally offered for free in 2017, digital assets have evolved into a cultural symbol of the early NFT era. In 2022, the intellectual property was acquired by Yuga Labs, the creator of the boring ape yacht club.

Earlier this year, speculation was made about the possible sale of product IP. However, Greg Solano, co-founder of Yuga Labs, dismissed the rumor and noted that although many parties were close to the company, there were no plans to evacuate soon.