- Billionaire investor Mark Cuban is the go-to influencer for NFTs, new data shows.
- The Shark Tank star and Dallas Mavericks' owner owns NFTs from iconic collections like CryptoPunks.
- Media personality Anthony "Pomp" Pompliano was the top influencer among Gen Z, the data showed.
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Mark Cuban, the billionaire investor and Shark Tank star, is not only a guru for cryptocurrencies but also the top influencer for digital collectibles known as NFTs.
The Dallas Mavericks' owner is the most influential person and go-to source for non-fungible tokens, according to a new report from online gambling research firm Time2Play, which surveyed about 1,000 NFT enthusiasts.
Cuban scored the title thanks to his social media following and to survey respondents who ranked him first for people they seek out for news, advice, and updates on NFTs.
On Twitter, Cuban has 8.6 million followers, and he teases his NFT collection in his bio. His stockpile of NFTs, which are generally defined as digital pieces of art tied to blockchain technology, includes collectibles from iconic series like the Bored Apes Yacht Club, CryptoPunks, and the Mutant Ape Yacht Club.
Breaking the survey down by generation, Cuban was the top influencer among both Millennials and Gen X. But he came in third among Gen Zers, who are anywhere from 10 to 25 years old.
That cohort's top NFT influencer is Anthony "Pomp" Pompliano, a bitcoin bull and YouTube personality whose daily market newsletter reaches more than 210,000 people. He invests in early-stage companies and is heavily invested in bitcoin — once saying half of his net worth is invested in the cryptocurrency.
Closely behind Cuban among the overall most influential people in the digital collectible space is former T-Mobile boss John Legere, who famously bought an NFT from DJ Steve Aoki for a whopping meme-number value of $888,888.88.
Meanwhile, Beeple, the artist known for selling his NFT collection titled "Everydays" for $69 million, was the most recognizable name in the NFT space and the fourth top influencer, the data showed.
The market for NFTs exploded last year with sales topping $41 billion and nearing the value of the traditional art market, according to one estimate. Many famous collections, like the Bored Ape Yacht Club, CryptoPunks, and Wall Street Bulls, have sold out in hours and even minutes after launching, with people buying up the digital tokens like baseball trading cards.