01 also spent over 30 million on a lunch with Buffett.
A banana that cost 2.53 RMB at a fruit stall that morning was sold for over 37 million RMB at the auction that night, and with fees, the total transaction price exceeded 45 million RMB! Just as Bitcoin surged to $100,000 with the 'Trump whirlwind', the cryptocurrency circle contributed new topics for public discourse. According to reports from Caixin and Xiaoxiang Morning Post, on Wednesday evening local New York time, at a contemporary art auction held by Sotheby’s, a banana taped to the wall was finally sold for a staggering price of $5.2 million.
The total transaction price, including fees, reached $6.24 million (approximately 45.17 million RMB).
As the highest-valued fruit in the world, this banana is a conceptual artwork titled (Comedian) created by Italian prank artist Maurizio Cattelan, intended to satirize market speculation. The work comes with an authenticity certificate and installation instructions, allowing the owner to replace the rotten banana at any time according to their wishes.
Auctioneer Bark said when the bidding price approached the peak, 'I never thought I would say, ‘A banana for $5 million.’ According to reports, this banana was purchased that morning by Sotheby’s staff from a fruit stall in Manhattan's Upper East Side. The owner of the fruit stall, from Bangladesh, revealed that the selling price of this banana was 35 cents (approximately 2.53 RMB).
Of course, what is valuable is clearly not the banana itself, but the information it contains and the artwork's global recognition. Art critic Jason Farago once commented that (Comedian) is a satire of speculation in the art market. Cattelan posed the question: 'What basis does an object have to gain value?'
What kind of basis does an item have to gain value?
On November 29, at a press conference held in Hong Kong,
Cryptocurrency mogul Justin Sun ate the 'banana' he previously bought for 45 million RMB. In front of the cameras, Justin Sun tore off the silver tape, took the yellow banana off the wall, peeled it, and took a bite. 'It’s much tastier than other bananas, really good, haha,' Justin Sun said with a smile.
On the morning of the 30th, a reporter from Xiaoxiang Morning Post learned from Justin Sun's staff that the payment had been completed using cryptocurrency, which Sotheby’s confirmed. Xiaoxiang Morning Post previously reported that Italian artist Cattelan taped a banana to the wall, creating the artwork titled (Comedian).
On the evening of November 20 local New York time (November 21 Beijing time), the well-known 90s billionaire from China and founder of TRON, Justin Sun, purchased the artwork at the auction for $5.2 million, with a total payment of $6.24 million including commission. Justin Sun previously told a reporter from Xiaoxiang Morning Post that he plans to pay tribute to the artwork through a public performance art event.
In response to netizens' doubts about his hype and even allegations of money laundering, Justin Sun stated, 'Regarding the so-called money laundering allegations, I want to say that it is impossible. The world's most famous auction houses like Sotheby’s have very strict anti-money laundering measures, and every transaction goes through rigorous scrutiny. All my investment activities are transparent and compliant.'
'This auction is more of an exploration of art and culture for me, rather than a traditional investment behavior. I believe the essence of art lies in its ability to stimulate discussion and thought. Regarding the doubts about 'hype', I understand that this is a phenomenon that a controversial work itself may provoke. This precisely reflects the charm of art — it prompts deep reflection by challenging conventional perceptions.'
(Comedian) made its debut at the Basel Art Fair in Miami in 2019, quickly sweeping global media headlines and sparking discussions about the nature and value of art. It is reported that this work is limited to three pieces in total, two of which were sold in 2019 for $120,000, and the third was donated to the Guggenheim Museum.
As an edible artwork, (Comedian) has been eaten multiple times. When exhibited in Miami, the piece was publicly eaten by performance artist David Datuna. Later, during a 2023 exhibition in South Korea, it was peeled and eaten by local art student Noh Hyun-soo. In both instances, the events concluded with staff buying a new banana to stick back on the wall for continued display.
The winner of this auction is also a very familiar figure to Chinese investors, 34-year-old cryptocurrency mogul and founder of TRON, Justin Sun. After purchasing the artwork, he will receive a genuine authentication certificate and instructions for installing and replacing the banana.
Justin Sun stated that Cattelan's work represents a cultural phenomenon, bridging the worlds of art, internet memes, and the cryptocurrency community. Over the next few days, he plans to eat the banana himself as part of this unique artistic experience, to 'honor its place in art history and popular culture.' He also stated that since Trump was elected, cryptocurrency prices have risen, and he expects to see strong purchasing power from the cryptocurrency community for artworks in the future.
It is reported that Justin Sun will use cryptocurrency to pay for the purchase. However, there are voices questioning whether this auction involves hype or money laundering. Public information shows that Justin Sun was born in July 1990 and is the founder of TRON. He holds a bachelor's degree in history from Peking University and a master's degree in law from the University of Pennsylvania. He was also one of the first students at Jack Ma's Hupan University. In 2014, he became the chief representative of Ripple Labs in Greater China and was one of the earliest evangelists of blockchain concepts in China; in 2017, he became the founder of the blockchain project 'TRON'. He was also recognized as a Global Young Leader at the Davos Forum in 2014 and was listed twice among Forbes Asia's 30 Under 30 entrepreneurs in 2015 and 2017.
However, although Justin Sun has many accolades, he is also highly controversial: TRON was once labeled the largest 'air coin', and Justin Sun was considered to be deceiving people. At the end of August 2017, under the shadow of 'air coin' allegations, TRON's ICO raised around 500 million RMB.
On September 4, 2017, the central bank and seven ministries issued a notice (on preventing risks of token issuance financing), requiring all types of token issuance financing activities to stop immediately. Organizations and individuals that had completed token issuance financing should make arrangements for refunds. Initially, Justin Sun stated during a live stream that he would not refund the tokens, but later, under pressure from various parties, he refunded the financing. However, he then went overseas, and his tokens were listed on multiple foreign exchanges.
It is worth noting that in July 2019, Justin Sun also made headlines for his record-breaking spending of $4.57 million (approximately 33 million RMB) to buy Buffett's lunch, only to later 'stand up' on the agreement. Before the meal, he also published an open letter to the TRON community (a community of investors holding TRON), stating his belief that through proper understanding and communication, Buffett would change his overall stance on cryptocurrency and blockchain, incorporating this new investment strategy into his portfolio.
However, just a few days later, Justin Sun suddenly announced on Weibo that he was 'cancelling' the luncheon due to illness. He subsequently became embroiled in a whirlpool of 'money laundering', illegal fundraising, and involvement in gambling and pornography.
In the early hours of July 25, 2019, Justin Sun posted on Weibo expressing deep remorse for his excessive marketing and eagerness for hype, offering sincere apologies to the public, media, and regulatory agencies.
Justin Sun expressed that due to his immature words and actions, the Buffett lunch incident gradually evolved into an out-of-control failure of excessive marketing, resulting in many unforeseen consequences, negatively impacting the public and raising concerns among regulatory agencies. He expressed 'extremely sincere apologies' for this. On the evening of December 12, 2019, Justin Sun's Weibo account was closed due to complaints of violating laws and regulations and the (Weibo community convention), after which he ceased to be active on Weibo.
However, in January 2020, Justin Sun finally had dinner with Buffett, which reportedly lasted over three hours, featuring steak and Coca-Cola, with a bill of $515.05.
The digital currency issued by Justin Sun, TRON, surged over 13% instantly.