CryptoPunks Sold for $20 Million. Who Won?

Welcome back to the Now Newsletter. I’m Matt Medved.

The CryptoPunks acquisition has dominated the conversation this week. Yesterday, I broke the news that the Infinite Node Foundation (NODE) paid around $20 million for the iconic project’s IP, previously held by Yuga Labs.

Before we get into the analysis and aftermath, I want to take a moment to reflect on why CryptoPunks matter. Full disclosure: I own one. I’ll never forget the exhilaration of pulling the trigger in March 2021 — ten days after the Beeple sale, when the floodgates burst and the NFT tide came roaring in.

After months of championing onchain digital art, it felt like I was finally putting my money where my mouth was. Candidly, it was also a bit terrifying: I’d just spent how much on a pixelated JPEG?

Turns out, that fear was unfounded. Of everything I bought during those heady days, this one aged best — and for good reason.

While not the first NFT project, CryptoPunks are undoubtedly the most influential. Launched in 2017 by Larva Labs as a free-to-claim experiment, the 10,000-piece generative art collection would go on to define a movement.

Many of the space’s most vital voices, from Art Blocks founder Erick “Snowfro” Calderon to collectors 6529 and Cozomo de’ Medici, are proud members of the Punks community. Beyond its place in internet history, owning a Punk has become more than a status symbol; it’s a signal that you were early to crypto or have deep conviction in its future. More details in our guide here. 

In 2023, we partnered with CryptoPunks to produce the definitive docuseries on the project in tandem with their book launch. Speaking to the founders, leading artists like Beeple and Claire Silver, and even traditional art world luminaries like Hans Ulrich-Obrist, solidified something that felt obvious in hindsight: Punks have staying power. But so has the question of who should steward them.

That question is back in sharp focus, following NODE’s landmark deal with Yuga Labs. Let’s dive into what it means — and who came out on top.

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Who Won the CryptoPunks Deal?

Following my scoop that NODE acquired the CryptoPunks IP for roughly $20 million, reactions across the space were swift and sharp.

Most Punk holders responded favorably, seeing a nonprofit foundation as the ideal long-term home for the project. However, some felt that Yuga Labs had undervalued the project, a sentiment that only amplified after Pudgy Penguins CEO Luca Netz chimed in, claiming he would have paid $75 million. 

Yuga Labs co-founder Wylie Aronow (aka Gordon Goner) rebuked those critics, stating in no uncertain terms that they “would never have sold to another for-profit company” and calling such an outcome “a disaster both for the community and long-term value of Punks.”

Let’s take a closer look at NODE. Its co-founders, Micky Malka and Becky Kleiner, are the managing partners of Ribbit Capital — a venture capital firm that made early investments in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Coinbase, among many others. Fellow VCs like Mike Dudas, Nick Tomaino, and Andrew Steinwold were quick to hail Malka as an “OG” and “crypto GOAT” following the news.

Pudgy Penguins CEO @LucaNetz says he would have spent $75 million for CryptoPunks IP 👀 pic.twitter.com/0mgw1G4B5H

— Now Media (@nowmedia) May 13, 2025

NODE plans to work with top art institutions to integrate CryptoPunks into the broader cultural canon, starting with an exhibition of the full collection at its new Palo Alto headquarters. So far, they’ve made all the right moves — assembling an advisory board that includes Larva Labs co-founders Matt Hall and John Watkinson, Calderon, and Aronow.

As the caretakers of CryptoPunks, NODE now holds one of the most culturally significant artifacts in digital art history. Their responsibilities go beyond preservation — holders want Punks to be elevated beyond crypto-native circles and enshrined within the broader story of 21st-century art and technology.

Backed by a $25 million endowment from Malka and Kleiner, NODE is well-capitalized and uniquely positioned to support CryptoPunks for the long haul — something few others in the digital art world can claim. As collector Benny Gross, who helped broker the deal, reflected, “We have been looking for a long time for true digital art patrons and we have found them.”

The whole basis for this debate is also so ridiculous, I’m going to stop commenting after this. Selling the IP to another for-profit entity (even if it meant more money in the short term for Yuga) would have been a disaster both for the community and long-term value of punks.…

— GordonGoner (Wylie Aronow) 🍌 (@GordonGoner) May 14, 2025

Although stewardship may have changed hands, ownership is another story. Even with the IP handed off, Yuga still holds a powerful position.

While the dollar figure behind Yuga’s original 2022 acquisition of CryptoPunks was never disclosed, it included 423 Punks as part of the deal. Notably, Yuga only parted with five Punks in the deal with NODE and still holds a reported 414 in its treasury, maintaining its status as the largest holder. At the current floor price of 47.5 ETH, that vault is worth more than $50 million at a minimum (likely significantly more as they hold numerous rares).

Could Yuga have found another buyer for more than $20 million? Undoubtedly. But by safeguarding the future of CryptoPunks with a nonprofit foundation, Yuga is essentially future-proofing their investment by ensuring they age gracefully without overt commercialization. Depending on how the deal was structured, Yuga could also potentially benefit from corporate tax advantages by recognizing a capital loss on the sale.

“I get why everyone has an opinion. Here’s mine: Punks are now untouchable, they’re going to a million-dollar floor, and I own a lot of them.”

WYLIE ARONOW (GORDON GONER)

“Putting punks in a non-profit means that the only value that can accrue is to the NFTs themselves, not some other random bullshit someone cooks up,” Aronow explained. “You think Punks are valuable? Great, there’s now only one way to invest in that thesis. Buy Cryptopunk NFTs. If you don’t get why that’s bullish for Yuga, you’re forgetting that we own more than anybody.”

So who will emerge as the winner of the deal? It’s still too early to say, but it’s looking like a rare win-win for all parties involved — including the holders, for whom the news felt more like a sigh of relief than a victory lap. If you believe that CryptoPunks need thoughtful preservation and cultural context to appreciate in value, NODE looks like the right custodian for the job. And as that value compounds, no one stands to gain more than Yuga — now unburdened by execution risk but still closely tied to its upside. 

As for Aronow, he’s putting his money where his mouth is.

“I get why everyone has an opinion,” he tells Now Media. “Here’s mine: Punks are now untouchable, they’re going to a million-dollar floor, and I own a lot of them.”

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