In 2022, Opensea, known as the leader in the NFT trading market, completed a US$300 million Series C financing at a valuation of US$13.3 billion. However, Opensea's valuation plummeted to just $1.4 billion at the end of last year, a drop of almost 90%. In response to this shift, Opensea announced a layoff of 50% of its employees. This change has turned Opensea from a position that was originally regarded as an "irreplaceable market leader" to speculation about whether it will be acquired.
From market leader to possible acquisition
In an interview with DLNews, Opensea CEO Devin Finzer expressed that he is open to the possibility of acquisition. He said frankly that if a suitable partner emerges, Opensea will definitely consider this option.
Although Finzer revealed that OpenSea had received an acquisition proposal, he did not disclose specific details, such as the acquirer and the time when it was proposed. He emphasized that OpenSea is not actively seeking acquisition opportunities and has no plans to be acquired. As for the decision to lay off employees at the end of last year, he explained that the company's restructuring was to adjust the composition of the team to make it leaner and more flexible to operate in the market, rather than downsizing due to financial pressure.
Cooperating with luxury brands
In the interview, Finzer revealed that he recently had active meetings with senior executives of luxury brands to jointly develop customized NFT projects and participate in Paris Fashion Week Activity. Although luxury brands like Gucci and Louis Vuitton began to dabble in cryptocurrencies as early as 2021, Finzer believes that this year is different: NFTs are now better understood. What he found in these conversations was that the teams responsible for running these projects and programs appeared more mature and professional. This cooperation builds a new bridge between luxury brands and the NFT market, bringing more opportunities and innovation to both parties.
Blur hides unknown regulatory risks?
According to data from DappRadar, Blur’s total trading volume reached $736 million in the past 30 days, surpassing other NFT market competitors, including Opensea’s $105 million in trading volume. According to statistics from Cryptopotato in December last year, since Opensea’s withdrawal, Blur has become the leader in the NFT market, accounting for 80% of the market share.
Regarding Blur’s rapid rise, Finzer said that he is not worried and is focused on building a safe and reliable platform: We are committed to building a safe environment and by delisting Any fraudulent or questionable product series to protect users.
He then further revealed: "We have noticed that Blur has taken many different approaches to legal and regulatory aspects," which seems to imply that Blur may have taken some steps that are different from industry standards in these key areas. Practice, may there be unknown legal risks hidden?
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