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Online commerce giant eBay has announced the acquisition of a non-fungible token marketplace as it extends its foray into the NFT ecosystem.
eBay announced that it had acquired a NFT marketplace called KnownOrigin marking its largest move into the digital collectibles space.
U.K.-based KnownOrigin was founded in 2018 as a platform to enable content creators and collectors to buy and sell NFT digital collectibles on the blockchain. The announcement described it as a “leading” marketplace, but analytics platforms tell a different story.
According to DappRadar, it is a minnow in the world of NFT marketplaces, ranked at 27th with just a couple of hundred dollars in daily trade volume. However, in terms of Ethereum-based NFT marketplaces, it is ranked in eighth place. The platform has facilitated 5,189 trades worth $7.8 million since it launched.
Further details of the acquisition such as financials were not revealed in the announcement.
Big move for eBay
Despite the relative obscurity of the platform, it is still a massive move by eBay. Jamie Iannone, the firm’s CEO, said that the commerce platform is often used to search for unique additions to collections, before adding:
“KnownOrigin has built up an impressive, passionate and loyal group of artists and collectors making them a perfect addition to our community of sellers and buyers.”
eBay first ventured into NFTs in May 2021 when it allowed users to buy and sell digital collectibles. It was also reportedly mulling crypto payment options in the same month.
The acquisition grants eBay a fully-fledged NFT platform that it can control. This will add more security to the process and peace of mind for buyers beyond just relying on seller integrity.
eBay’s current system allows approved sellers to list NFTs in the same format as a physical item. Many listings also have details of NFT mint numbers and crypto wallet details for post-sale transfers.
There are some limitations, however, with a $10,000 ceiling on items, no ability to bid in an auction, and geographical restrictions.
eBay NFT collections
eBay has grand ambitions for NFTs, having launched its own collection last month in partnership with Web3 platform OneOf. The “Genesis” NFT Collection featured 3D and animated versions of athletes featured on Sports Illustrated covers over the years.
NFT investments and acquisitions are still occurring despite a slump in sales and volumes during the bear market. Be[in]Crypto reported that Solana-based NFT marketplace Magic Eden had secured another funding round pushing its valuation up to $1.6 billion.