Sotheby’s in the firing Line in BAYC Collector Lawsuit

On Aug 19, 2023

As NFT prices hit a critical juncture, the pitchforks and flaming torches have begun to emerge as luckless traders look to attribute blame. The latest crusade, a lawsuit aimed squarely at Sotheby’s auction house, and the army of celebrities who have at some point, endorsed BAYC NFTs.

Sotheby’s has drawn the ire of 4 Bored Ape Yacht Club collectors, who accuse the auction house of misleading marketing tactics surrounding a $24 million BAYC sale in September 2021. Back then, a single, unnamed, collector purchased over 100 of the Bored Ape NFTs for the princely sum. An act that the plaintiffs believe artificially inflated the value of the collectibles, and misrepresented their true worth.

In the complaint, the 4 collectors have indicated their belief that Sotheby’s colluded with BAYC parent company, Yuga Labs, in order to give the impression of mainstream adoption. This comes in addition to accusations made against payments company, Moonpay, for surreptitiously orchestrating celebrity endorsements. All in all, over 30 companies and individuals have been added as defendants to the case, running from the aforementioned Sotheby’s and Moonpay, to celebrities, Paris Hilton, and Justin Bieber, and sportswear brand, Adidas.

Bored Ape Yacht Club Prices Continue to Slide

The crux of the case rests in the massive slide in value for items within the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT collection. As recently as May 2022, the cheapest available on the market came in at an eye-watering $400,000. However, the ongoing bear market has put the brakes on the associated token prices, and opportunistic traders have soured everyday trading, and that figure has now shrunk to approximately $50k.

So, while those looking to make big bucks by trading in high value assets, many have suffered high losses instead, and now people have begun to question what let them there in the first place.

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*All investment/financial opinions expressed by NFT Plazas are from the personal research and experience of our site moderators and are intended as educational material only. Individuals are required to fully research any product prior to making any kind of investment.