Justin Sun, a Chinese-born cryptocurrency entrepreneur, recently fulfilled his promise to consume the banana from Comedian, a controversial artwork valued at $6.2 million (£4.9 million)
Created by Maurizio Cattelan in 2019, the artwork features a banana duct-taped to a wall. Sun secured the piece at a Sotheby’s auction in New York, outbidding six other participants.
At a press conference in Hong Kong, Sun ate the banana, framing the moment as part of the artwork’s legacy. “Eating it at a press conference can also become a part of the artwork’s history,” Sun said, adding with a light-hearted remark, “It’s much better than other bananas.”
Before purchasing the piece, Sun had wondered whether the banana would spoil, admitting he had some “dumb questions” about it. While the fresh banana was priced at just 35 cents, it is now one of the most expensive fruits in the world. At the event, each attendee received a banana and a roll of duct tape as a souvenir, with Sun encouraging everyone to join in: “Everyone has a banana to eat.”
Sun, who runs the Tron blockchain network, compared the artwork and similar abstract pieces to NFTs (non-fungible tokens), digital artworks valued by the market. “These NFTs have no intrinsic value, other than that prescribed by people,” he explained.
In addition to his Comedian acquisition, Sun announced a $30 million investment in a cryptocurrency project linked to US President-elect Donald Trump.
Sun is also facing charges from the US Securities and Exchange Commission over the offering of unregistered security tokens, a case he denies and is currently contesting.
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