Chinese-born cryptocurrency entrepreneur Justin Sun made headlines by eating the banana from Maurizio Cattelan’s Comedian, a controversial artwork he purchased for $6.2 million at Sotheby’s in New York last week. The artwork, which famously features a banana duct-taped to a wall, gained notoriety for its simplicity and exorbitant valuation.
Sun consumed the fruit during a press conference in Hong Kong, symbolically linking the artwork to cryptocurrency and its abstract value. He highlighted the parallels between the banana and digital assets like NFTs (non-fungible tokens), which derive their worth solely from market demand. “Eating it at a press conference can also become a part of the artwork’s history,” Sun remarked, adding, “It’s much better than other bananas.”
The banana, a key component of the installation, is regularly replaced during exhibitions. Sun’s $6.2 million purchase included the rights to display the artwork and a guide on replacing the fruit. While the banana has been eaten before—once by a performance artist in 2019 and again by a South Korean student in 2023—neither individual paid for the privilege, let alone millions of dollars.
At the event, each attendee received a banana and a roll of duct tape as a souvenir. “Everyone has a banana to eat,” Sun quipped.
Sun, who runs the Tron blockchain network, emphasized that abstract art like Comedian shares similarities with NFTs—digital artworks that hold value only ascribed by their owners. His platform allows users to trade cryptocurrencies and NFTs, reflecting his fascination with the intersection of unconventional art and modern financial systems.
Not without controversy, Sun was charged last year by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for selling unregistered security tokens. He denies the allegations, and the case remains unresolved.
This week, Sun revealed a $30 million investment in a crypto project backed by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, continuing his pattern of bold financial ventures and headline-making decisions.
