GameStop launches NFT marketplace as speculative frenzy cools

RETAILER GameStop launched its long-awaited marketplace for non-fungible tokens (NFT) on Monday (Jul 11) just as sales of such digital artworks dry up amid the crypto industry crash.

The marketplace is part of a push by GameStop chairman Ryan Cohen to expand its array of digital services and online products in a bid to turn around the struggling video-game retailer.

But the company is following several others that entered the market before the boom in NFT speculation fizzled as the broader crypto markets came under deep pressure. Earlier this year, US's biggest crypto exchange, Coinbase Global, launched its own NFT marketplace. In June, e-commerce heavyweight eBay bought NFT marketplace KnownOrigin.

GameStop is hoping to have an edge by tapping into its existing customer base since gamers are among the NFT industry's biggest enthusiasts.

The market for NFTs has taken a turn for the worse. In June, the market for the tokens - such as artworks of bored apes and pudgy penguins - had the first month of under US$1 billion in sales since June 2021, according to tracker DappRadar. On the world's biggest NFT marketplace, OpenSea, sales volume in June fell by more than 70 per cent month over month, according to Dune Analytics.

Last week, GameStop said it fired its chief financial officer and announced job cuts in a bid to turn around the business. BLOOMBERG