It is quite hard to find another collection that sums up the nervy-turvy nature of digital assets more than the Pudgy Penguins NFT collection. This collection, which emerged at a time when the entire crypto space was at its peak, quickly found an embrace within the crypto community. However, this was short-lived as it came crashing in a plot led by its founder.
A Bang and a Scare
Pudgy Penguin launched on July 7, 2021, and was received with a lot of fanfare in the crypto community. The collection comprises 8,888 penguins residing on the chilly icebergs of the Ethereum blockchain. Upon launch, sales quickly went up, with a collector having made the highest purchase at 225 ETH (almost a million USD) in September 2021.
This massive success was soon followed by rumours that the founder of the project, ColeThereum, and his team planned a rug pull. Further details revealed how he was previously involved in a venture called eBoy Outlet that ran more like a quasi-scam. A public outcry by the community soon followed, which eventually saw the project bought for $2.5 million by Luca Schnetzler in April 2022.
Recovery and Redemption
Then came a new lease of life following the change of leadership, and the project has been making progress ever since. After the purchase in April, its floor price tripled to 3.09 ETH, although it soon fell to below 3 ETH in the month that followed.
However, the penguins are back flapping their wings since late July, with a steady rise in the collection’s floor price. It witnessed a double jump on August 11 when the floor price moved to 2.63 ETH, then further climbed to 2.73 ETH.
At present, data from Opensea shows its floor price to be 3.4 ETH with a total of 4,553 owners. CoinGecko estimates its market cap at $46,757,430.71.
See the all-time sales chart below:
Source_ www.non-fungible.com
See three months' performance (post-purchase) below
Source_ Coingecko
A Trajectory for the Future
Schnetzler has been able to steady the ship of the Pudgy Penguin collection. Since taking over, the project has set a new course and keeps finding valuable use cases for its holders. Schnetzler has overseen the establishment of Pudgy Media and the launch of the Pudgy Penguin toy collection.
The project recently announced its new board of advisors, which features executives from Meta and Nansen, among others. It also recently had a record sale of 400 ETH.
Conclusion
Pudgy Penguins epitomizes how quickly a blockchain project can rise and fall, and still get back on its feet. If there is a source of confidence for its future, it is certainly its new leadership, which will continue to guide the project in the right direction.
