In the year 2021, the mention of NFTs typically conjured up images of Profile Picture NFTs (PFPs). However, the subsequent year of 2022 brought about a bearish market that saw PFP prices plummet, leading to a collective weariness of empty promises and unfulfilled roadmaps. Fortunately, the NFT landscape has since evolved, with a growing number of grassroots artists carving out successful careers in the web3 space. This shift has ushered in a proliferation of art pieces that are both meaningful and stylish, and niche NFT exchanges have emerged to cater to the needs of both artists and collectors (ex, Foundation & SuperRare).
As an admirer of artistic expressions, I have dedicated the past few weeks to studying my favorite NFT artists, delving into their backgrounds, artworks, online presence, and even their wallet addresses. As a result, I have compiled an artist database of my fav artists, which I will share after streamlining my chaotic Notion.😂
However, it is worth noting that the creation and promotion of art often require substantial capitals. While aesthetic appeal is undoubtedly subjective, the monetary value of an artwork is primarily determined by the market forces of supply and demand.
Therefore, I believe that an analysis of the top whale collectors on NFT platforms can be immensely beneficial to the broader community. These collectors wield significant pricing power, which often influences the tastes and preferences of other smaller collectors. By analyzing the behavior of these whales, one may uncover some alpha.
With this in mind, I conducted an in-depth analysis of the top 100 collectors on Foundation.app over the past 30 days.. Here’s what I found.
The form is pretty straight forward by itself.
Remarkably, the leading collector has expended 61.04 ETH, while the 100th collector only made a relatively modest expenditure of 2.83 ETH. While there is a considerable gap between the two, it is noteworthy that a mere 10 ETH can thrust one into the top range of the list. This finding is particularly striking given the current frenzy in the crypto space. Of the top 100 collectors, the top 14 who have expended more than 10 ETH make up 39.2% of the total ETH expenditure.
Intrigued by this insight, I took a closer look at these 14 collectors.
The majority of individuals are professionals in the fields of cryptocurrency and NFTs, with established Twitter and ENS accounts and involvement in multiple projects.
Their wallets’ net worth in ETH ranges from 0.000443 to an impressive 968, with only a select seven holding a net worth exceeding 10 ETH.
While it may appear peculiar to be a top NFT art collector with a depleted wallet balance, it is entirely reasonable to assume privacy and security concerns as potential factors.
However, for public figures active on Twitter, disclosing one's investment portfolio promotes a sense of transparency and accountability. Those willing to advocate for their financial decisions with tangible evidence are undoubtedly more trustworthy.
Thus, I have honed in on individuals below with a balance surpassing 10 ETH for further investigation.
@Vince_Van_Dough @pablopunkassohot @zepump @Artifaction2 @jaggedNFT.eth @batsoupyum @fred.jpg
After going through each of their collections on Foundation, I have discovered that each individual possesses a distinctly unique assortment. While some collect pieces from trending artists, they also seek out works from lesser-known creators. Additionally, some collectors exhibit a consistent preference in terms of the objects depicted, while others amass a diverse range of creations.
So it looks like, the artistic NFT market remains authentic to the personal preferences of collectors. It is not as if suddenly, by the end of 2021, everyone switched to Azuki as their profile pictures.
The whales, they bought it simply because they like it, not to flip it.
The advent of artistic NFTs has substantially altered the prevailing perception that the most valuable utility of NFTs lies in their potential for flipping. This exciting development has breathed new life into the NFT world, rendering it a dynamic space for collectors, artists, and enthusiasts alike.
That being said, I must stress that this is just the tip of the iceberg. I have not yet delved deeply into other NFT markets. Developing a useful NFTs whale watch takes long term monitor. Moving forward, I plan to further explore other NFT markets, beginning with SuperRare to make some aggregated analysis, with Dune + scrapping + some artsy touches 👀
So stay tuned and follow @C0rgiX for more!