Meet the 7 most expensive NFTs in the world!

If you follow the cryptocurrency market, you've certainly heard of NFTs. These tokens are booming and receive numerous investments daily. And the curiosity is about the most expensive NFT in the world. 

Known for their high values, attracting diverse audiences (including famous artists), this has made NFTs become well-known and highly valued in the market.

So, follow our article and discover which is the most expensive NFT in the world, as well as a list of the 7 most valuable NFTs we currently have. 

List of the most valuable NFTs in the world

1. The Merge — US$1.8 million.
2. Everydays: The First 5000 Days (Beeple) – US$69.3 million.
3. Clock — US$ 52.7 million.
4. HUMAN ONE — US$1,000,000.
5. CryptoPunk #5822 — US$ 23.7 million.
6. Alien CryptoPunk #7523 — US$ 11.75 million.
7. TPunk #3442 — US$ 10.5 million.

What are NFTs?

Well known mainly in the Cryptocurrency market, NFTs are non-fungible tokens (non-fungible token, in the meaning of the acronym).

To fully understand this concept, it is necessary to understand what NFTs really mean and how they work. 

• Token: Digital representations of an asset registered on a blockchain (a large database containing user information) are called tokens. Thus, if someone has a token for a work of art, for example, it's a sign that they own that work. 
• Non-fungible goods: Fungible goods are those that can be exchanged for others of equal value (for example, a R$ 20 note can be exchanged for two R$ 10 notes, giving the same value). Non-fungible goods are those that cannot be exchanged for another of equal value, such as Leonardo da Vinci's painting "Mona Lisa," which cannot be exchanged for another of equal value. 

Thus, an NFT is a representation of a unique item, which can be digitally or physically created. These unique items, which can be transformed into NFTs, include works of art, game items, moments from a specific sport, music, memes, and many others.

Thus, in practice, an NFT functions as a digital certificate of authenticity for that non-fungible asset. It's a seal that represents the asset's authenticity and that you are the person who owns it. 

If you download, for example, the image of the digital artwork "Crossroad" from the internet, you'll end up with a worthless copy. The original, sold for R$ 6.6 million, is owned by the owner who has the registered NFT for this work.

Because it is registered on a blockchain, it is not possible to copy the NFT, making the work safer and more highly valued on the market. 

List of the 7 most expensive NFTs in the world

Want to know the 7 most expensive NFTs in the world? Check out the list below and discover how these non-fungible tokens became so expensive on the market. 

The Merge — US$1.8 million

The world's most expensive NFT is The Merge. This digital work was created by an unknown digital artist who identifies himself only as PAK. 

Unlike other works, The Merge was sold on Nifty Gateway in 2021 to 28,893 collectors who purchased 312,686 units. Each unit is a unique NFT that appreciated by US$1,400,000 every six hours. 

The artwork, created as three white masses on a black background, increased in size with each buyer who purchased an NFT. Thus, with the accumulation of all the masses sold of this work, the total raised reached the historic mark of US$1,400,000. 

Everydays: The First 5000 Days (Beeple) – US$69.3 million

Considered the most expensive NFT ever sold to a single person, this work, which translates as “Every Day: The First 5,000 Days,” was created by an artist from the United States, Michael Joseph Winkelmann, known as Beeple. 

The NFT "Everydays: The First 5000 Days" sold for US$1,400,000 in March 2021 at a Christie's auction. The buyer was MetaKovan, founder and CEO of Metapurse, an NFT investment fund.

The work is a collage of 5,000 illustrations and animations that were produced and photographed by Beeple every day between May 1, 2007, and January 7, 2021. 

Clock — US$1.5T4T 52.7 million

Taking the bronze medal in the ranking of the world's most expensive NFTs is the work "Clock," also created by Pak. Its high price is notable for its high resale value. 

The work was created to raise funds for activist Julian Assange after his 2019 arrest on charges of espionage against the United States. Essentially, it's a clock that displays the time he's been in prison and, in addition to designing the Clock, allows the creation of NFTs with censored messages. 

In February 2022 the work was sold for US$1,400,000 and acquired by the AssangeDAO Supporters Group.

HUMAN ONE — US$1.5 billion

Artist Beeple raised this amount with NFTs by creating his first work outside the digital world. It's a 3D moving sculpture composed of four screens showing an infinite film of an astronaut exploring different locations at different times. 

Ryan Zurrer, a former partner at Polychain Capital, acquired the Human One NFT in November 2021 for US$1,400,000. The high price was due to the artwork's ability to change over time. 

An important detail: although Beeple does not own the NFT of the work, he periodically accesses and makes updates to the artwork. 

CryptoPunk #5822 — US$ 23.7 million

If we stop to list them, many CryptoPunk pieces are among the most expensive NFTs in the world, with over 10,000 avatars created. The asset #5822 was created by Larva Labs on Ethereum and was one of the models that inspired profile picture projects around the world.

In particular, this NFT was purchased for US$1,400,000 by Deepak Thapliyal, CEO of Chain, in February 2022. 

Some details caught my attention in this NFT, hence its high price: it's the rarest edition in the series, with only 9 in 10,000 featuring this style. And it's also one of the few pieces featuring a bandana.

Alien CryptoPunk #7523 — US$ 11.75 million

Shalom Meckenzie, the largest shareholder in DraftKings, paid the price of US$$ 11.75 during Sotheby's 2021 “Natively Digital” auction on this NFT to gain access to one of the collection's rare assets. 

This is due to the fact that CryptoPunk #7523 is part of a collection of 9 alien punks created by Lava Labs. 

The detail that caught our attention in this NFT is the fact that it features a medical mask, which attracted a lot of attention during the pandemic period that the world experienced. 

TPunk #3442 — US$ 10.5 million

TPunk #3442 was the first to be traded at such a high price. Being part of the Tron blockchain, which has its own version of CyberPunks, this one in particular deserved a lot of attention.

Sold in August 2021 to Justin Sun, co-founder of Tron, after the sale was completed, he donated the NFT to APENFT, a Tron-based project dedicated to tokenizing artwork on the blockchain.

The work resembles the character Joker, which attracted a lot of attention and made it one of the most expensive NFTs in the world. 

Why are NFTs so expensive?

When we talk about NFTs and the world's most expensive NFT, we're often shocked by the prices charged for these tokens. And the initial question remains: why are NFTs so expensive?

And here come several factors that make NFTs become so valued in the market and have the values that were presented:

Exclusive digital authenticity

It's important to remember that the NFT is unique, impossible to copy, and encrypted in a way that is highly secure and truly guarantees authenticity. 

For this to happen, it's necessary to use very advanced technology, with a massive blockchain that encrypts the NFT so it can't be copied. Furthermore, multiple servers are used, making everything more expensive. 

Cryptocurrency Operations

All operations required to authenticate an NFT are performed in cryptocurrencies. This type of mining is more expensive and complicated. This ultimately results in NFTs becoming more expensive.

Demand

When the most expensive NFT in the world was announced and the list we showed started to become popular, more and more individuals and legal entities (companies) became interested in the technology.
Like any market, demand has grown, generating a huge increase in the value of technology. 

Speculation

Just like cryptocurrencies, the more speculation surrounding NFTs, the higher their value. Therefore, with the technology's rise in value, owning an NFT has become expensive. 

Scarcity

It is also worth remembering that the NFT represents something unique, which will make it highly valued in the market and, therefore, make the system value non-fungible tokens even more. 

That's what led to the world's most expensive NFT selling for so much. Even though it was acquired by a group, it appreciated significantly because of its uniqueness. 

Why buy an NFT?

There are a few reasons why someone might acquire an NFT. Here's why owning a non-fungible token is a good idea:

• You have the possibility to access unique benefits offered by the NFT creator.
• It's a way to make a good investment with your money. 
• You will be supporting the NFT creator. 
• It's a way to stand out in the market and become popular, as NFTs have been on the rise since the most expensive in the world was announced. 

Why can't I copy the NFT?

It's interesting to know a little about the technology behind NFTs so you understand that it's not possible to copy NFTs. 

NFTs are registered on the blockchain, a massive encrypted database that holds a unique record of their token. Thus, when verification is needed, the information is accessed to verify authenticity. 

Therefore, it is not possible to copy the NFT, as it is encrypted on several servers, making it unique.

Frequently Asked Questions

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