News Ethereum

NFT Market Cap Drops $1.2B as Ether Rally Loses Steam; Penguins Overtake Apes

by Crypto Hobby

Updated August 18, 2025

The non-fungible token (NFT) market has experienced a significant downturn, losing over $1.2 billion in value within a week.

This decline is closely linked to a slowdown in the rally of Ether (ETH), the primary cryptocurrency used for minting and valuing many NFTs.

The drop in ETH prices has directly impacted the overall valuation of NFT collections.

Key Takeaways

The NFT market cap fell by approximately 12%, from $9.3 billion to $8.1 billion.
This downturn occurred as Ether's price dropped by about 9%.
CryptoPunks and Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) saw substantial value decreases.
Pudgy Penguins have risen to become the second-largest NFT collection by market capitalization.

NFT Market Cap Plummets Amidst Ether's Decline

Data from NFT Price Floor indicates that the total valuation of NFT collections dropped to $8.1 billion on Monday.

This represents a 12% decrease from the $9.3 billion market cap recorded just the previous Wednesday.

This recent slump follows a 40% surge in NFT market capitalization since July.

The correlation between Ether's price and the NFT market is evident, as NFTs are largely valued and transacted in ETH.

When Ether's value decreases, the NFT sector typically follows suit.

Major NFT Collections Experience Value Loss

Several prominent NFT collections have felt the impact of the market downturn.

CryptoPunks, despite remaining the top collection by market capitalization, saw its value decrease by approximately $300 million, falling to $2.1 billion.

This is a 12% drop from its previous $2.4 billion valuation. Sales volume for CryptoPunks also declined by 34% over the past seven days, with total sales dropping by 28%.

The Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), which previously held the second position, has now slipped to third place. Its market capitalization fell by nearly 20%, from $602 million to $482.3 million.

Pudgy Penguins Ascend in Market Ranking

In contrast to the declines seen by other major collections, Pudgy Penguins have climbed to the second-highest valuation.

Although the collection also experienced a reduction in overall value, erasing about $100 million, its market cap stood at $491 million on Monday, down 17% from $591 million.

This rise highlights the dynamic nature of the NFT market. Notably, blockchain company BTCS Inc. recently added three Pudgy Penguins NFTs to its corporate treasury, signaling growing recognition of these collections as legitimate assets for diversification.