When Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) exploded into public consciousness in 2021, they were heralded as the future of digital ownership. Celebrities, tech evangelists, and opportunistic investors poured millions into what was essentially a blend of blockchain technology and digital art. JPEGs sold for hundreds of thousands; Twitter profile pictures became status symbols. For a time, NFTs were a cultural and economic phenomenon.
But by 2024, the shine had worn off. Sales volumes plummeted, major marketplaces shut down or pivoted, and once-valuable collections were reduced to digital relics. The failure of NFTs is not just a story of speculative excess, it’s a cautionary tale about hype, technological overreach, and the fragility of perceived value in a virtual economy.
The Illusion of Ownership
This disconnect between perceived and actual ownership led many to question the legitimacy of NFTs as an innovation in property rights. It became clear that the NFT was less a vehicle for meaningful digital ownership and more a speculative instrument for betting on popularity.
One of the most misunderstood aspects of NFTs is what buyers actually purchased. Contrary to popular belief, owning an NFT does not mean owning the artwork itself. Instead, it means owning a token on a blockchain that points to a digital file, often hosted on an external server. If that server goes offline or the link breaks, the NFT essentially points to nothing. In most cases, copyright and reproduction rights remain with the original artist or platform, not the NFT holder.
Environmental and Ethical Costs
The environmental impact of NFTs, particularly those built on energy-intensive blockchains like Ethereum (before its 2022 shift to proof-of-stake), was significant. The carbon footprint of minting and trading NFTs was comparable to that of entire small nations. Artists and collectors faced mounting criticism for participating in an ecosystem that contributed to climate change with negligible social utility.
Moreover, the NFT space quickly became a hotbed for fraud, theft, and market manipulation. Wash trading, where users buy and sell NFTs to themselves to inflate prices, was rampant. Plagiarism, where scammers minted others’ art without permission, undermined trust in the platforms. For many creators, the dream of a decentralised artistic renaissance was co-opted by opportunists and grifters.
Crashed Collections and Celebrity Losses
By late 2022, the NFT market had lost over 90% of its peak value. Once-hyped projects cratered, including:
Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC)
At its peak, individual Apes sold for over $400,000. As of 2024, many are worth under $40,000, with sales volume and cultural relevance drastically diminished.
CryptoPunks
Once considered historical artifacts of the NFT movement, their floor price dropped from over $400,000 to around $50,000.
World of Women
Promoted heavily by celebrities and influencers, the project saw a massive decline in trading activity and value.
Doodles, Azuki, and Cool Cats
All major “blue-chip” NFTs that experienced dramatic depreciation, in some cases losing over 95% of their peak value.
These collapses also caught major celebrities and athletes in the fallout:
Justin Bieber bought a Bored Ape for over $1.3 million, recent valuations place it at less than $60,000.
Stephen Curry and Tom Brady both invested in high-profile NFT projects and platforms. Brady’s NFT company, Autograph, reportedly struggled to maintain momentum amid the crash.
Neymar Jr. spent over $1 million on multiple Apes, which are now worth a fraction of that.
Reese Witherspoon, an advocate for women-led NFT projects, saw her heavily promoted investments like World of Women fade from relevance.
Logan Paul admitted his $623,000 NFT purchase was now worth just $10.
These aren’t isolated losses, they represent a broader wave of disillusionment as high-profile endorsements failed to sustain public interest or market value.
A Solution in Search of a Problem
At their core, NFTs attempted to solve problems that didn’t exist for most users, while introducing new ones. Digital art has thrived for decades without the need for artificial scarcity. Blockchain verification added complexity without solving real issues of provenance or trust. And while proponents claimed NFTs could revolutionise everything from gaming to real estate, few applications proved both sustainable and practical.
Lessons Learned
The NFT saga offers important lessons. First, speculative enthusiasm should never replace genuine utility. Second, decentralization is not inherently democratizing, without safeguards, it can empower the worst actors. Third, when technology is driven by hype rather than need, collapse is inevitable.
There may yet be a future for NFTs in niche applications, such as ticketing or identity verification. But the dream of a decentralised digital utopia powered by collectible JPEGs has faded. The NFT boom now stands as a stark reminder: not every innovation needs to be monetised, and not every blockchain application is progress.
