Rumors are rumors until they’re not. Last week, Friend of the NFT Culture team Sophisticated Art Speculator leaked a rumor that Andreessen Horowitz was working with yuga labs on their upcoming $APE token. The Financial Times has taken that rumor and added a bit more validity to the story publishing news that the valuation of the project may reach as high as $5bn market cap.
$APE a Top 30 Coin at launch? 
If this is true, depending on the valuation range this would put the token in the top 50 market cap immediately and possibly as 25. After the token is launched it will undoubtedly also draw heavy investment from collectors around the globe.
Yuga Labs has recently announced rapid expansion plans with job postings on their twitter for additional solidity devs.
The APE token presents a unique opportunity within the BAYC ecosystem including access and more. Rumors are abound about the Miami HQ / Bar and other projects that could be supported exclusively by this token.
One of the things that has created the parabolic excitement around the BAYC was ownership of the ape and the ability to do whatever the owner wants with it. This has resulted in many awesome projects like Jenkins the Valet, the upcoming Ape Music Project (rumored to be similar to the gorillaz (no ape pun intented)) and more. We’ve also seen top companies like adidas originals and arizona iced tea embrace the ape community.
WEN $APE?
It is no longer a question of if, but when? Trusted NFTCulture sources have confirmed that the major exchanges are already working with yuga labs on making sure the coin is as accessible as possible at launch (Meaning exchanges like Coinbase, Gemini, and Binance are already working with the team).
In all likelihood this means that much of the tokenomics behind the coin have already been established and the terms of the deal and valuation may be the only thing holding this project launch back.
A Superbowl Surprise?
Both Eminem and Snoop Dogg are well documented Ape owners. We’ve also seen videos of Snoop in a motion cap suit. Timbaland actively working on Ape projects, and general excitement about NFTs reaching a fever pitch. Pepsi is all in on NFTs and will likely do some sort of NFT giveaway during or around the half time show. (similar to macys thanksgiving day parade). At this point we’d be shocked to NOT see some sort of BAYC specific ad or announcement in conjunction with the big game. We suspect that this event will be the catalyst driving BAYC into the broader pop culture world. Unless web2 bureaucracy holds the terms of the deal back we think the token will launch shortly after the event.
About A16z
Founded in 2009 by Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, Andreessen Horowitz (known as “a16z”) is a venture capital firm in Silicon Valley, California, that backs bold entrepreneurs building the future through technology. We are stage agnostic: We invest in seed to late-stage technology companies, across the consumer, enterprise, bio+healthcare, crypto, and fintech spaces. a16z has $28.2B in assets under management across multiple funds, including the $2.9B Bio funds, the $3.1B Crypto funds, and the Cultural Leadership Fund.