Christie’s Closes NFT Department Under New CEO Bonnie Brennan
, a well-known auction company in the UK, has shut down its specialized non-fungible token (NFT) section. This strategic decision reflects how the company handles digital art.
As part of a larger restructure under new CEO Bonnie Brennan, who took over in February 2025, NFT operations will be combined with the larger 20th and 21st-century art categories. This change shows that the auction house is no longer focusing on NFTs as a separate category, which is a hint of hardys in the digital art market.
Effect on Employees and Business
As part of the restructuring, Christie let go of two employees, one of them being Nicole Sales Giles, the former Vice President of Digital Art, at the end of August. The auction house will have at least one digital art expert on staff to handle continued digital art sales, even if it is closing. Christie’s made it clear that it will still trade , but they will now be part of its regular art auctions instead of being handled by a separate Team.
A Legacy in the NFT Boom
Christie’s was a large part of the NFT market’s growth. The sale of Beeple’s Everydays: The First 5000 Days for $69.3 million in 2021 was a huge event that made NFTs well-known. In September 2022, the auction house launched Christie’s 3.0, an on-chain auction platform, and teamed up with sites like to make its presence even stronger.
It also welcomed new forms, such as BTC Ordinals, and held its inaugural Ordinals auction in October 2024. These actions showed how dedicated Christie was to digital collectibles at the height of the NFT market.
Market hardys Force Change
The shutdown is in line with a larger drop in the which has viewn trading volumes and sales fall since their high in 2021–2022. The worldwide art market has also had hardys, with less activity hurting auction houses.
Christie’s wants to make things easier by adding NFTs to its other art categories. This will allow them to keep serving collectors who are interested in . The choice makes people wonder what will happen to Christie’s 3.0 platform and what part it will play in the changing world of digital art.
What to Expect
Christie’s move may be a hint of caution, but it doesn’t mean they are completely leaving digital art. The auction house’s change in direction reflects a more unified strategy, treating NFTs as part of the larger contemporary art market. Christie’s restructuring is a practical response to shifting market conditions in the field, which is going through a lot of ups and downs right now under Brennan’s leadership.
