Jimoni worries about CryptoPunks: The NFT collector is ‘overbought’

In January 2021, gmoney bought the most expensive CryptoPunk at the time, Ape Punk #8219 for 140 ETH ($150,275 at the time). The sale — just months before Beeple broke the $69 million daily sales volume barrier — got a lot of attention thanks to gmoney's tweet about CryptoPunks and digital shortages shadowing the NFT craze.

But this was yet to come, and crypto fell directly after, taking with him the price of CryptoPunk floor.

Coming from a tradfi background, gmoney got into crypto in 2017 but it wasn't until the end of 2020 that he started getting interest in NFTs. The New Yorker has gone all in on several high-profile collections, and currently sits on 271 Chromie Squiggles, several CryptoPunks, one Autoglyph, several Beeples, and Justin Aversano's Twin Flame.

In the year In 2020, the money was the first NFT cryptocurrency, but as the 2020 pandemic sparked, playing a lot of Fortnite is a big brain for digital ownership.

At the beginning of quarantine I used to play Fortnite a lot and I saw how much all these kids were spending on skins. I realized that digital scarcity is definitely going to be a thing,” says gmoney.

“In my previous career, I was always looking for opportunities where I thought the market was undervaluing things. That's how I stumbled upon crypto and then NFTs.

gmoney today focuses most of his time on his onchain lifestyle platform and apparel brand 9dcc, but is still a major influencer in NFTs.

Buying at the most expensive CryptoPunk ‘top' for a week

gmoney remembers that he thought he had bought the top with his monkey buying when crypto started making a big comeback.

“Crypto was shaking, bitcoin was at $30,000 but when I bought it, I think bitcoin went back to the lows of $20,000 and I was like, ‘Holy shit, I literally just bought from the top,'” says gmoney.

“What I went through at that point was I said to myself, ‘Okay, well, this is a long-term business. It was always a long-term business.' I thought I bought the monkey for $150,000 and wanted to sell it to Christie's or Sotheby's for $5 million in five years, not knowing if I could do that in five months.

“Especially in that first week there were times because Bitcoin went back so wildly that I literally thought I had bought from the top. Fortunately it wasn't, it was short lived. I think Flamingo DAO bought that Alien Punk for 600 ETH ($750,000 at the time) a week or so later.” That's about what made me join Flamingo, then everything started to tear up again.

FOMO after losing $1,500 to CryptoPunks

Perhaps unsurprisingly, FOMO was a big factor in the buying, as gmoney has been hesitating on CryptoPunks since losing their run up to $1,500, a number that looks small at first glance.

In the midst of making hundreds of Chromie Squiggles, gmoney credits Snowfro, Nate Alex, and Justin Trimble for convincing him.

“Snowfro was a big help when I was making Squiggles. It was mostly him, Nate Alex, and Justin Trimble that got me really red on Punks because up until that point I wanted to find the next CryptoPunks,” gmoney said.

“At the time, the punk floor was around $1,500 and I was thinking that was too high. I was trying to find the next version of this and then the red guys hit me hard.

CryptoPunks, Squiggly, Autoglyphs: gmoney's NFT collecting thesis

Like many NFT CollectorsDC InvestorandVonMises, Cash has a long-term horizon on most of his portfolio.

“I'd probably say I'm more of a buy-and-hold collector. I think especially on the sets we talked about. I think they will probably rise up over time and become historically significant,” says gmoney.

“There are only 10,000 punks, 10,000 squiggles, roughly 500 autoglyphs, so I think over time they'll end up in museums as digital artifacts. You cannot include these.”

I think that's why I slowed down a lot after the first half of 2021. There's just so much stuff coming out and the supply was so high that I'd rather have something that could go a little higher. It's already very high, but the odds of going above anything new are higher, maybe I can make it like 10,000x.

“That's why you haven't seen me do much with my collection since then, because I'm very happy with what I've got.”

gmoney has a soft spot for Nate Alex's 100 fully passable fully onchain Squiggly collection launched in October 2020.

“I really like Squiggly's and I like Net. I think Nate is awesome and I think those are going to be very historic and stand the test of time. It's just a small collection.

gmoney says he developed his eye for subtle and desirable features in the collection by taking cues from collectors like the VonMises.

I remember after I took out one of the hyper squiggs Vonmis gave me a DMS and offered me 0.75 ETH or 1 ETH something… I remember saying no and I don't need the money but I understood that at the time. He was a very smart man and if he wanted hyper, maybe someone else wanted him,” says gmoney.

“So I tracked down all the people who were making Hypers and bought one after another because of their relationship with Vonmises. Even though I didn't know what unusual things were at the time, I was like, ‘Well, if this guy wants it, maybe I want it.'

Gmoney builds onchain apparel brand 9 DCC.

In the year The birth of onchain clothing and lifestyle brand 9 DCC in early 2022 was something gmoney was already thinking about. He recalls a conversation with Pranksy, who initially started as a vision for the Metaverse fashion brand, but whose IRL clothing fell through with Adidas soon sparked the idea.

Since then, 9dcc has become popular among crypto natives and even some celebrities and athletes.

“I think the best thing is that these people who are wearing our product are not wearing it for the technology, they're wearing it for the design, which I think says a lot about the design,” he says.

“A big shout out to our creative director for that, because first and foremost, we have to make things that people want to wear. If we have this great technology aspect but people don't want to wear it, it's just going to sit there.

But celebrities wearing it and athletes wearing it means the design is good and the technology unlocks a plus.

The name 9dcc refers to the last four digits of a wallet address, and gmoney wants to turn mainstream users into crypto ideas and digital ownership.

“If I'm wearing a hat or shirt or whatever, ‘Hey, do you want a free NFT?' “A lot of people are curious, and I ask them to pull out their phones, and I just show them that experience. I feel like people have a preconception that NFTs are these overvalued pictures,” says gmoney.

“I teach them that this is proof that they've met me in real life. The only way you can get this NFT is by meeting me. They generally think it's great. And then maybe they'll ask more questions, maybe they won't. Although we don't refer to them as NFT in any of our messages, we're more into digital engagement.” We believe everyone deserves a digital experience.

“We all go on the Internet, is that a digital experience? We go on websites, all these things. It's just a function of that and we've put all crypto away. I always use a guide or let's say the north star I know it's good if my mom uses it but if she can't we still have work to do.

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Quick fire Q&A with NFT collector gmoney

Biggest NFT sale to date?

I was gifted Bored Monkey when they were around the 0.5 ETH floor. I sold it for 79 ETH, which I think was worth about $270,000 at the time. That might be my biggest selling point.

Who are your favorite digital artists? 1. XCOPY – Number one is XCOPY, I think my biggest regret that last cycle was not getting XCOPY. I think I'm too expensive of the things I want.

2. Die with the ones you love the most

3. Grant Uni

When did you buy your first crypto?

In the year It was in 2017. I remember trying to buy one around 2012. I saw Bitcoin at $27, and I was trying to buy it, but I couldn't figure it out. I spent four or five hours trying to figure it out and couldn't. I miss him, but that's what happened.

If you could only name one, what would be your absolute favorite NFT on your combined wallets?

I have to say my CryptoPunk Ape, but in terms of other favorite pieces of art, I have some Justin Aversano stuff. I helped bring him into the space so his stuff always resonates with me and means a lot to me.

What is an underappreciated NFT project right now, in your opinion, if you had to name one?

CryptoPunks

Whose collection do you admire besides your own?

Off the top of my head, I could probably say genealogy. I think he has an incredible collection.

Are there any up-and-coming artists you would encourage readers to pay attention to?

I say die with lots of likes. I think he has a cult following in the space but I still sometimes look at the number of followers and I think this guy is still not widely known. I love his voice. I think he's funny and like the nicest person you'll ever meet in person.

Who would be your top three favorite followers for NFTs? 1. Derek Edwards

2. Chris F

3. Aaron Wright

I feel like they've definitely been here for a long time and definitely see the trends before most.

What advice would you give to someone who is just curious and wants to get their feet wet with NFTs?

I say take your time and be patient. The market is going nowhere for the time being. Find things that resonate with you and don't just do it for the money, do it because you love the art.

Any advice for someone trying to survive in crypto for the long term?

No use, no use. You don't need energy. Uphill energy is enough.

Links

X: @gmoneyNFT

gmoney wallet: /gmoney

gmoneyvault wallet: /gmoneyvault

9dcc Store:

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Greg Oxford

Greg Oakford is the CEO of Upside DAO, Australia's leading crypto and web3 collaboration hub and investment fund. He is an avid NFT collector and founder of NFT Fest Australia. Prior to crypto, Greg was a marketing and sponsorship specialist in the sports industry working on professional events.

Follow the author @GregOakford