JPG File Sells for $69 Million - JPG File That Created an NFT Mania

NFTs are now part of the blockchain landscape. But when exactly did they catch on? Some would say 2017, when the highly popular Cryptopunks and Cryptokitties collections were launched. But many would point to one specific jpg file selling for millions, as the start of NFT mania. How did this happen?

Jpg file sells for millions, as NFT mania gathers pace

“Everydays - The first 5000 days”, is a digital collage created by the artist Mike Winkelmann, known by his pseudonym Beeple. It compromises the daily photos Winklemann had been posting online for over a decade, one a day since 2007. Beeple sold this collage as an NFT at the Christies auction house, for a staggering price of 69.3 million dollars!

When a jpg file sells for millions some people may scratch their heads. How does a simple digital file garner that kind of price? 

What is behind the NFT mania?

Beeple’s art piece was minted as an NFT a month before the auction. This is the process of storing the jpg file on a blockchain, thus verifying its authenticity and owner. Turning the file into a unique digital asset, and buyers are apparently willing to spend millions on it.

Beeple is not just selling jpg files for millions as NFTs. He is also doing so with video files. “Human one”, an mp3 file turned into an NFT that is constantly changing was sold for nearly $29 million dollars. Once again the ability to actually own this item as an NFT, is why the file sells for millions amid the NFT mania. Another Beeple video file, “Crossroads”, sold for $6.6 million.

Will NFT mania continue?

Nobody knows for certain what the future will look like, but NFT mania reached a peak in 2021, with total sales of over 17 billion dollars. The NFT mania gathered pace into 2022, with record sales during January and February. In the cryptopunks collection alone, 5 different jpg files sold for over $7 million, including cryptopunk #5822, going for a staggering 23.7 million.

The NFT mania cooled down a bit after March, but there are still bullish investors who believe the NFT market will continue to grow.

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Q&A

Can a JPG be an NFT?

Any digital file can be stored on the blockchain and thus become an NFT, including JPG files.

Which artist’s NFT was sold for $69 million dollars?

The American digital artist Mike Winkelman, known as Beeple, sold his NFT “Everydays - The first 5000 days” for $69.3 million. 

Who bought a $69 million NFT?

“Everydays” by Mike Winkelmann was purchased by Singapore based programmer Vignesh Sundaresan, a cryptocurrency investor, for 69.3 million dollars. Sundaresan is the founder of the Metapurse NFT project. Like Winkelamnn, Sundaresan is also known online by his pseudonym, MetaKoven.