OpenSea Delists Bored Ape Copycat Project and Aptly Named PHAYC NFTs

As the Bored Ape Yacht Club continues to grow astronomically, the launch of its copycat collections was inevitable. Projects would copy the BAYC artworks and list them on marketplaces like OpenSea in the hopes of earning easy money. Now, OpenSea has delisted two such Bored Ape copycat projects.

More on Bored Ape copycat projects

First on the Bored Ape copycat projects list is the Phunky Ape Yacht Club (PAYC). The collection is a copy of the original BAYC drawings but the apes are mirrored so they face left. The collection’s Twitter bio reads, “Apes phace left on the right side of History.”

Next is the aptly named copycat project, PHAYC—a play on “fake” and “BAYC”. This too followed PAYC’s path to make left-facing copies of Bored Apes. This one’s bio is “PHAYC IT TIL YOU MAKE IT”.

Both the projects launched last week with PHAYC launching a couple of hours after PAYC, reported CoinDesk. Interestingly, both the projects sold out in a matter of hours. Ironically, the two even bashed each other on Twitter, claiming to be the original Bored Ape copycats!

However, eventually, OpenSea banned both the projects for allegedly breaching the platform’s intellectual-property policies. Nonetheless, PAYC is now listed on Mintable. While PHAYC was listed on Rarible, the marketplace has now blocked the collection. 

BAYC is one of the most successful NFT projects in the market. Recently, it even hit 70 ETH floor, with CryptoPunks trailing behind. Moreover, several Mega Mutant Serums from the collection have been selling for millions of dollars, with the most recent one fetching a whopping $5.8 million! Besides, a range of celebrities, including Snoop Dog, Jimmy Fallon, Steph Curry, DJ Khaled, and more have aped into BAYC!