Bored Ape NFTs Crash as Brand Pivots to Fashion and Metaverse

The Bored Ape Yacht Club ecosystem is undergoing a significant transformation as the value of its digital collectibles collapses while the brand expands into physical retail and virtual worlds. Once a high-flying symbol of the NFT boom, the collection has seen floor prices drop dramatically, with high-profile holders facing steep losses on their initial investments [2]. Despite this digital downturn, the intellectual property behind the apes is finding new life through a global streetwear brand and an upcoming metaverse launch [1, 3].

Key takeaways

• Justin Bieber’s Bored Ape purchase has lost approximately 99% of its value, dropping from about $1.3 million to a floor price of roughly $11,700 [2].
• The "Bored of Directors" fashion brand has expanded into major retailers like Walmart and Target since launching in May 2022 [1].
• Yuga Labs is pivoting to the metaverse with "Otherside," an ambitious virtual world set to launch officially on November 12th [3].
• Broader NFT trading volume has fallen by over 90% from its 2021 peak, while physical collectibles continue to see record growth [2].

High-profile investments face steep declines

The financial volatility of the NFT market has been starkly illustrated by the experiences of celebrity investors. Justin Bieber’s purchase of Bored Ape #3001 for 500 ETH (roughly $1.3 million) has seen its value implode to a floor of 6.10 ETH, or about $11,700, representing a potential loss of 99% [2]. Similarly, NBA star Steph Curry, who paid 55 ETH (approximately $180,000) for his ape, faces a potential paper loss of more than 93% if he were to sell at the current floor price [2]. These individual losses reflect a broader market trend; trading volume that peaked at $2.9 billion in 2021 had tumbled to under $24 million by March 2025 [2]. This decline coincides with a wider crypto pullback, with Bitcoin and Ethereum prices falling significantly from their highs, dragging down the value of assets traded on the Ethereum blockchain [2].

Brand expansion into fashion and the metaverse

While the digital asset market cools, the Bored Ape brand is aggressively pursuing physical and virtual expansion. Bored of Directors, a streetwear brand derived from Bored Ape iconography, launched in May 2022 and has rapidly evolved into a global fashion force [1]. The brand, founded by Alex Locke, now boasts over 500 SKUs and products stocked by major retailers including Walmart, Kohl's, PacSun, Amazon, and Target [1]. Concurrently, Yuga Labs, the company behind the Bored Ape Yacht Club, is pushing forward with its metaverse ambitions. After raising $450 million in funding in 2022, the company announced the official launch of "Otherside," a gamified virtual world, for November 12th [3]. The project aims to create an interoperable