Moonbirds in Yuga’s Nest: Financial Genius or Risky Business?

In a surprising move, Yuga Labs, the creators of the Bored Ape Yacht Club and Otherside, have acquired Proof, the start-up behind the troubled Moonbirds collection. The acquisition includes Proof’s team, intellectual property, and the Moonbirds collection, comprising 10,000 unique NFTs.

Moonbirds initially gained huge attention with $280 million of trading volume within 48 hours of its April 2022 launch, minted at 3 ETH per Moonbird. The floor price later reached around 30 ETH before plummeting to recent lows around 1 ETH. Proof Collective Passes, once trading at 100 ETH, dropped to 1.6 ETH in early February before the acquisition.

Despite Moonbirds facing challenges amid market fluctuations and community concerns, Yuga Labs sees potential in revitalizing the brand within the Otherside metaverse. Proof CEO Kevin Rose will play an advisory role post-transition. Daniel Alegre, Yuga Labs CEO, expressed enthusiasm for shared values of art, culture, and community on the blockchain. Alegre envisions Moonbirds fitting seamlessly into Otherside, as if the art was “actually created for Otherside.”

The cabal Strikes again!

Eagle-eyed traders noticed some strange activity in the lead up to the announcement, leading to speculation that the news of the acquisition was leaked early to insiders. Daily sales for Moonbirds were below $100,000 throughout February, and suddenly spiked to $460,000 on February 14, persisting at around $333,000 on February 15. After the Yuga Labs announcement on February 16, daily sales surged to $3.1 million. The price floor climbed from $2,680 on the 12th, to over $6,000 on the 16th.

While the current situation remains speculative, it underscores concerns about previous Yuga announcements where similar trading activity has taken place.

Reaction To the news

Regarding public reaction, holders of Bored Apes and other Yuga assets expressed confusion, joined by the wider web3 community, concerned that insufficient attention has been given to current ecosystem assets without adding another collection to the mix.

That said, some view it as purely a smart financial move for Yuga, anticipating long-term payoffs even if it doesn’t make perfect sense at the moment:

For the most part though, the only individuals showing enthusiasm about the Proof acquisition are Yuga themselves and Moonbirds holders; the latter because things simply couldn’t have got any worse for them under previous ownership.

Yet, a Yuga Labs acquisition is no longer the sure-fire success it once seemed. The company has grappled with keeping its community content, experiencing extended periods of silence and apparent stagnation on Otherside – Yuga’s foray into becoming the leading player in gaming. Some believe this shift signifies Yuga taking on too much, straying from its initial roots.

Yuga previously acquired 10KTF, resulting in a setback for the once beloved project, subsequently plagued by significant layoffs that removed the team who made the project as successful as it was. Over one year on, the project has regressed since the Yuga takeover, leaving holders frustrated with the increasingly convoluted mechanics of the ecosystem. Essentially, 10KTF is now viewed as an afterthought. The question looms: will the same fate befall Proof and Moonbirds, or does Daniel Alegre and Yuga have a plan for a complete turnaround?

Final Thoughts

In light of the recent accomplishment where Pudgy Penguins flipped the BAYC floor price over the past weekend, time is of the essence for Yuga to take decisive action before attention wanes further. With the substantial resources and key players at their disposal, betting against Yuga, despite recent challenges, might still be a risky proposition.