Solana-Based NFT Marketplace Magic Eden Raises $27M Series A

Non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace Magic Eden has raised $27 million in a Series A funding round to expand its range of products and services.

• The round was led by Paradigm and included contributions from Sequoia and Solana Ventures, the Solana-based firm announced on Monday. NFTs are digital assets on a blockchain that represent ownership of virtual or physical items.
• The firm claims to be the largest NFT marketplace on the Solana blockchain having surpassed transaction volume of more than 7.5 million SOL over the last six months. It also boasts over 90% market share for NFT games secondary-trading volume.
• Magic Eden said it will use the funds to build out a gaming vertical and launch an NFT mobile application for the browsing, minting and trading of NFTs on the go.
• The Solana ecosystem has been one of the main beneficiaries from developers and traders seeking an alternative to the high transaction fees on Ethereum. In January, Research by JPMorgan noted that Ethereum's NFT market share dropped to 80% compared to 95% a year earlier.

Read more: Solana Top Gainer Among Crypto Majors After BofA Endorsement, Rising NFT Activity