Magic Eden Ditches Multi-Chain Strategy for iGaming Ambitions

Magic Eden is shifting its focus from NFT trading to iGaming after deciding to abandon its multi-chain strategy, which briefly made it the largest NFT marketplace by trading volume. The company will shut down its Bitcoin and Ethereum-compatible marketplaces as early as March 1st and wind down its cross-chain wallet by April.

CEO Jack Lu stated that Magic Eden is orienting itself around 'the massive opportunity in iGaming,' a departure from the digital collectibles business where it built its reputation. The platform will retain support for Solana-based assets, which generated $576 million in monthly trading volume as of last month, per Dune data.

Magic Eden was among the first major platforms to support Bitcoin Ordinals after their introduction in early 2023 and initially captured more than half of the emerging market's trading volume within its first week of launch. However, Bitcoin-based assets only contributed $121,000 to Magic Eden's total monthly trading volume over the same period.