Fat Penguin uses physical IP to debut in Las Vegas, and it's even more popular without discussing NFTs!

Christmas Week Login to Las Vegas Landmark, $PENGU Defies Market Downturn and Rises Against the Trend
During the 2025 Christmas holiday season, the well-known NFT brand Pudgy Penguins successfully debuted at the Las Vegas landmark Sphere, projecting its iconic penguin image onto the massive spherical screen Exosphere.

Pudgy Penguins is now live on the Exosphere of @SphereVegas 🐧 pic.twitter.com/o4EZjU55gl

— Pudgy Penguins (@pudgypenguins) December 24, 2025

The promotional event officially launched on Christmas Eve and lasted for 7 days. Its spectacular animation not only covered the entire large dome but also attracted the attention of digital art and marketing circles worldwide. According to market data, despite the overall sluggish trend in the cryptocurrency market—Bitcoin ($BTC) dropping to around 87,000 and Ethereum ($ETH) falling below the 3,000 mark—Pudgy Penguins’ token $PENGU instead rose against the trend, with a 24-hour increase of about 1.3%, reaching a trading price of approximately $0.009201.

Image source: CoinGecko

This demonstrates that strong brand exposure can significantly boost investor confidence. Even as the global total market capitalization of cryptocurrencies shrank to $2.95 trillion and market sentiment plunged into fear (Fear & Greed Index at only 27), Pudgy Penguins still showed high activity on the Solana chain.
Circumvent Strict Crypto Advertising Bans, Focus on Physical Toys and Brand IP
The success of this approximately $600,000 advertising campaign hinges on its precise regulatory evasion strategy. Las Vegas Sphere enforces very strict restrictions on cryptocurrency advertising.
Reportedly, the venue typically only accepts promotions related to cryptocurrency exchanges or Bitcoin-related content. Earlier this year, the Solana meme coin Dogwifhat ($WIF) community raised $700,000 in an attempt to feature on Sphere, but ultimately refunded due to failure to pass review.

Pudgy Penguins’ strategy is to completely exclude all crypto elements, displaying only cute cartoon penguins and merchandise information in a one-minute animated loop, without mentioning NFTs or $PENGU .

Pudgy Penguins’ Strategy Director Vedant Mangaldas revealed that negotiations for this event began early in 2024. As the brand’s popularity outside the crypto circle increased, discussions gradually shifted to substantive stages.
He stated that the event was organized to celebrate the brand’s physical products, such as toys, animations, and apparel, rather than its crypto business, allowing them to fully comply with the venue’s advertising standards. This means that during the 7-day projection, there will be no mention of $PENGU or Layer2 networks, with all focus on promoting the cartoon images of the brand. This is also the main reason the brand can bypass traditional financial advertising restrictions.
Facing NFT Market Decline, Diversified Revenue Streams Sustain Brand Development
2025 was a challenging year for the NFT industry, with market trading volume significantly declining compared to the same period last year. First-quarter trading volume was only about $1.5 billion, down 63% from $4.1 billion in the same period of 2024. By December, the total market cap of NFTs had fallen to $2.5 billion, hitting a yearly low.
In the context of a harsh overall market environment, Pudgy Penguins stood out through successful transformation into physical retail. Under CEO Luca Netz’s leadership, the brand gained stable cash flow through physical toy production. Netz pointed out that although toy profit margins are relatively thin, the huge revenue generated can effectively extend the company’s operational timeline.
Currently, Pudgy Toys has expanded to 3,100 Walmart stores and has partnerships with retail giants such as Amazon, Walgreens, and Target. According to the latest financial estimates, Pudgy Penguins’ full-year revenue in 2025 is expected to reach $50 million, with physical product sales surpassing $10 million since launch.
This “using blockchain as a tool rather than an end” logic allows Pudgy Penguins to maintain high brand premium and market attention despite the plummeting NFT prices, providing the brand with ample resilience during the winter.
From Digital Collectibles to Mainstream Entertainment, Pudgy Penguins’ Blueprint for Mainstream Market Entry
Pudgy Penguins’ ambitions are clearly beyond the crypto circle. The brand has amassed up to 2 million followers on Instagram, and its GIF library has been viewed billions of times.

Mangaldas pointed out that most social media followers are even unaware that the brand is related to cryptocurrency, which proves the success of its IP branding.

In addition to physical products, Pudgy Penguins launched a mobile game called Pudgy Party this year, which surpassed 750,000 downloads within weeks of release. Analysts predict that as the brand penetrates the mainstream entertainment market, related ecosystem tokens still have huge growth potential.
Meanwhile, parent company Igloo Inc. is actively developing its own Layer2 network, Abstract, aiming to hide blockchain technology behind the scenes and provide seamless digital experiences for the public. Through Sphere’s visual impact, Pudgy Penguins not only serves the existing Web3 community but also successfully reaches hundreds of millions of mainstream consumers. This “invisible crypto” marketing model allows Pudgy Penguins to stand shoulder to shoulder with top global entertainment brands.
As the brand continues to break down the boundaries between virtual and real worlds, Pudgy Penguins is gradually moving toward becoming a globally iconic entertainment IP, while also providing a survival guide for other NFT projects amid market downturns.