NFT
(Photo : by DEVI RAHMAN/AFP via Getty Image) Visitors observe Non-Fungible Token (NFT) works at an exhibition entitled Indo NFT Festiverse at the RJ Katamsi Gallery, Indonesian Art University which combines art and technology in Yogyakarta on April 13, 2022.

Despite the backdrop of a struggling crypto market, Magic Eden, a launchpad and NFT marketplace on the Solana network, has recently closed a productive Series B funding round with a total of $130 million in secured funding.

Magic Eden Pushes Valuation to $1.6 Billion to Achieve Unicorn Status

This round was led by Electric Capital and Greylock Partners and participated by prominent blockchain firms and venture capital funds. After the closure, Magic Eden successfully pushed its total valuation to $1.6 billion, giving it a unicorn status in the market despite extreme conditions.

Some of the popular companies and incubators that joined the funding round are Lightspeed Venture Partners, Paradigm, and Sequioa Capital. According to Zhuoxun Yin, chief operating officer of Magic Eden, this development further "validates the industry and market we're in."

"There's investor appetite to bet on this market. We're very bullish on the horizon, there's a lot to build and most of the use cases are still early, so this gives us an opportunity to build that," says Yin.

What is Magic Eden?

Magic Eden is an NFT platform on the Solana blockchain that was built to support the public sale of NFTs, catering to the growing digital collectibles today. It also features a native NFT marketplace where people can conveniently and affordably buy, sell, and trade NFTs of different kinds amongst one another.

Magic Eden also hosts a launchpad on its own marketplace, which has already supported over 250 projects, facilitated that trade of around 7,000 NFT collections, and contributed more than 92% of NFT transactions on Solana.

According to Magic Eden, the funding raised will be allocated to expand the project's primary and secondary NFT marketplaces and the innovation of its existing products. More than that, an allocation will be provided as well on initiatives that seek to explore multi-chain projects.

Where Are NFTs Headed?

Jack Lu, chief executive officer of Magic Eden, notes that all the upcoming developments will be centered on making customer-responsive improvements. Lu also expressed his faith in the NFT's real-world utility.

"I think when you think about different use cases in crypto overall, right now it's clear NFTs are a bridge from the average consumer to the blockchain world," said Lu.

Indeed, Magic Eden has gained a huge amount of support ever since the momentum of NFT projects in recent months. Back in March, Magic Eden also raised over $27 million in a Series A funding round.

"We weren't intending to kick off another round immediately, but we had a lot of interest," Lu adds.

Magic Eden is now considered the second biggest NFT marketplace in the market in terms of transaction volume. It now follows OpenSea, an Ethereum-based NFT protocol as well. Reports also say that the annual revenue run rate of Magic Eden is already at $100 million.

Avichal Garg, the managing partner at Electric Capital, said in a report on Bloomberg that Magic Eden will appreciate more in value as the years go by. "You have to be patient with crypto," Garg said.

Read Also: Robinhood Wants to Allow Users to Store Cryptocurrencies and NFTs on its Platform

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