NFT Market Sheds $1.2 Billion Amid Ether Price Decline

The NFT market lost more than $1.2 billion in value within a week as Ether’s rally slowed, according to sector data. NFT Price Floor reported that total valuations of major collections dropped to $8.1 billion on Monday, down 12% from $9.3 billion last Wednesday. 

The setback came after the NFT market had surged 40% since July.

Ether’s Drop Impacts NFT Market

The decline coincided with a pullback in Ether (ETH), the dominant cryptocurrency powering most NFTs. ETH fell 9% from last Wednesday’s high of about $4,700 to $4,260 at the time of writing. 

With NFT prices denominated in ETH, shifts in the asset’s momentum directly affect valuations across collections. In the past 24 hours alone, ETH shed another 4%, and most of the top 10 NFT projects reflected similar declines.

CryptoPunks, still the largest NFT collection by market capitalization, lost roughly $300 million in value over the past week. Its market cap now stands at $2.1 billion, down 12% from $2.4 billion. Sales data from CryptoSlam indicates trading volumes for the collection also slowed, reaching just $12.7 million — a 34% drop. The number of sales fell to 51, marking a 28% weekly decline.

The Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), which ranked second last Wednesday, fell to third place after its market cap tumbled nearly 20% from $602 million to $482.3 million. The correction underscores the volatility even among the most established NFT brands.

Penguins Overtake Apes in Market Cap

Amid the shakeup, Pudgy Penguins climbed to the second-highest market valuation despite also posting losses. Its market cap reached $491 million on Monday, representing a 17% drop from $591 million last week. The reshuffling signals growing traction for the collection, which recently received a boost in visibility.

Last week, blockchain company BTCS Inc. disclosed that it had added three Pudgy Penguins NFTs to its corporate digital asset treasury. The move highlighted an emerging trend of companies diversifying treasuries with blue-chip NFTs, signaling recognition of the sector’s long-term potential despite short-term volatility.