New Christie's CEO Bonnie Brennan sees opportunity in younger collectors and crypto

Published Thu, Jan 23 20258:39 AM EST

Key Points

Bonnie Brennan, Christie's president of the Americas who becomes CEO Feb. 1, told CNBC in an exclusive interview that the shifting demographics of wealth are driving a new approach to the auction business.
Brennan has been at the auction for 13 years and will replace CEO Guillaume Cerutti, who remains chairman and will take on a new role.
She said more than a quarter of Christie's buyers and bidders in the Americas are now millennials or younger.

A version of this article first appeared in CNBC's Inside Wealth newsletter with Robert Frank, a weekly guide to the high-net-worth investor and consumer. Sign up to receive future editions, straight to your inbox. Art house Christie's is aiming to tap the next generation of wealth with online auctions, digital art and luxury goods, according to its incoming CEO. Bonnie Brennan, Christie's president of the Americas who becomes CEO Feb. 1, told CNBC in an exclusive interview that the shifting demographics of wealth are driving a new approach to the auction business. Brennan has been at the auction for 13 years and will replace CEO Guillaume Cerutti, who remains chairman and will take on a new role overseeing the artistic and cultural activities of Artémis, the holding company of the Pinault family that owns Christie's. Brennan said more than a quarter of Christie's buyers and bidders in the Americas are now millennials or younger. The surge in younger buyers has also shifted growth to online sales, with 81% of all bids at Christie's in 2024 coming from online channels. "We've had such a great increase in the number of millennial and Gen Z buyers," Brennan said. "We need to make sure we're good listeners about what they're interested in." The auction house's luxury goods business — putting up on the block everything from handbags to watches to jewelry — has been a strong source of new business from younger collectors, who often then transition to buying art. Brennan said sales of digital art and non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, are also set for a comeback, as crypto enjoys a resurgence in value and popularity, especially among the under-40 crowd. In 2021, Christie's sold the $69 million digital work of art by artist Beeple , marking a historic moment in the art world and the peak of the NFT craze. The digital assets have since collapsed in value, leading to widespread losses and accusations of fraud and market manipulation. "We had this crypto winter where we didn't have as many NFTs after the Beeple," Brennan said. "But with the crypto market stabilizing and seeing some greenshoots, I still believe there is a long runway there." Another big draw for younger collectors is celebrity collections. The Christie's sale of a collection of items once owned by Elton John, including his car, piano and a silver platform boots that sold for $94,500, totaled more than $20 million in all. "In America, celebrity sells," Brennan said. The shift in wealth from older to younger generation is remaking wealth management, luxury goods and especially the auction and collectible markets. Over $100 trillion is expected to be passed down to younger generations and women in the coming decades as part of the Great Wealth Transfer . Coupled with the growing earnings power and tech fortunes created among 30- and 40-somethings, collectibles markets that have been driven for years by baby boomers are seeing a vast changing of the guard. Geographically, Brennan said the U.S. will continue to be a big engine of growth for Christie's, accounting for 42% of the company's auction sales last year. Brennan's appointment as CEO, after serving as president of the Americas for four years, is seen as validation of the importance of the U.S. in the global auction market, especially as China's economy struggles. "America gets underplayed sometimes, but the backbone and the stability of our market every season is really from the Americans," she said. Beyond attracting younger buyers and growing in the U.S., Brennan said Christie's is also looking to expand its use of artificial intelligence. She said Christie's today mainly uses AI tools for human resource functions and to help answer common questions from clients. Over time, she hopes to use AI to "enhance the client experience" and perhaps even to help to value and authenticate works of art. "It's a helpful tool; it's not a replacement for people," she said. "We will also need the view from our experts. But AI will give some really good data to look at and review as an enhancement." Brennan said a stronger second half of 2024 is expected to continue or even accelerate this year. Global auction sales fell 25% in 2024 to $8.3 billion, according to ArtTactic, and were down 40% from their peak in 2022. Christie's did slightly better than many of its peers, however, reporting total auction sales of $4.2 billion in 2024, down 16%, with private sales totaling another $1.5 billion, up 41%. Art experts said the biggest drag on the market last year wasn't demand from buyers, but lack of great works bring offered for sale. Christie's said its "sell-through rate" — the percentage of lots that sold — was a healthy 86% in 2024. The company sold the most expensive work at auction last year, Rene Magritte's "L'empire des lumières," for $121 million. It was the only work to auction last year for over $100 million. Brennan said 2025 year is already showing signs of higher confidence among sellers. "We've got so much in the pipeline from clients, which tells me the market's going to be strong in the spring," she said. "You never know what's going to happen, but I feel really good about this year, especially the first half."