Steve Aoki told CoinDesk in August 2021 that NFTs would be “part of the culture” within five years. Almost exactly five years later, he liquidates what’s left of his crypto portfolio.
Arkham Intelligence data shows that Aoki’s wallet sold 1.785 billion SHIB for about $10,300 and exchanged 7.25 ETH for about $15,900 on Monday, routing $29,650 in USDT to Gemini. Two weeks earlier, the same wallet sold 4.155 billion PEPE via 1inch for $14,700. Smaller stablecoin moves from $600 to $1,700 via MetaMask filled the gaps between the larger exits.
These sales are pocket money, but the losses are not.
Aoki paid more than $800,000 for seven Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs during the boom of 2021, when he was one of the most visible celebrity advocates for the space.
Those seven Monkeys are now worth about $13,800 each, or roughly $97,000 total, an 88% drop from its purchase price. He didn’t sell them, but at the current rock bottom prices there is little left to recover.
At the height of the $NFT mania, Aoki secured financing for ‘Dominion $NFT TV show produced in association with Seth Green’s Stoopid Buddy Stoodios.
The show sold 500 NFTs in 30 seconds on Nifty Gateway. His manager told CoinDesk that the sale “barely covered” production costs, but demonstrated a market for “native IP on the blockchain.”
The show never made it to broadcast.
The wider $NFT market confirms the pattern. Bored Ape floor prices have fallen from over $400,000 in early 2022 to less than $14,000 today. The 2023-2025 bull market, which lifted Bitcoin to an all-time high above $126,000, largely ignored NFTs entirely. Unlike previous cycles, capital has increasingly favored projects that demonstrate clear utility and portfolio value over purely narrative or speculative assets.
Aoki still has the seven monkeys. Everything else goes to Gemini.