Are NFTs here to stay? A group of investors, including Kevin Durant, put down $100 million on the answer being a resounding “yes.”
OpenSea, an auction platform for non-fungible tokens, completed a Series B funding round led by Andreesen Horowitz. In addition to Durant, the round included Creative Artists Agency and Ashton Kutcher.
CAA represents numerous athletes across the NBA, NFL, MLB, and combat sports, including Chris Paul, Zion Williamson, and Buster Posey.
The round values OpenSea at $1.5 billion. OpenSea raised $23 million in its Series A round in March.
- The platform hosts NFTs produced by the Portland Trail Blazers, Miami Heat, and Candy Digital, which partners with MLB.
- It hosts sports-related NFT games such as Sorare, ZED Run, and MLB Champions.
- OpenSea gained notoriety as the host of the artist Beeple’s $69 million NFT sale.
OpenSea will use the funds to grow its staff and develop solutions to reduce the carbon emissions connected to its technology. The platform said it sold $160 million in digital assets in June.
The former NBA MVP and Rich Kleiman’s Thirty Five Ventures is among a group of investors in a star-studded $3.5 million seed funding round for media platform Just Women’s Sports.
