Magic Eden to launch ME token for cross-chain trading

Update Aug. 23, 7:10 am UTC: This article has been updated to include commentary from Matt Szenics.

The Magic Eden (ME) Foundation has announced the upcoming launch of the ME token, a new token designed to support Web3 consumer decentralized applications (DApps) via cross-chain digital asset trading.

According to a press release shared with Cointelegraph, the ME Foundation’s mission is to help develop the ME decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) protocols “with community-led governance.”

The token is expected to be central to Magic Eden, a global non-fungible token (NFT) and Runes platform, which plans to be the first to officially adopt ME as its ecosystem token.

Speaking with Cointelegraph, Matt Szenics, director at ME Foundation, stated that the Foundation was “excited” to introduce the new ecosystem token.

“Between hosting the top cross-chain protocols and the upcoming Magic Eden mobile in-wallet claim, we see demand for DApps actually designed for users taking off.“

Related: Magic Eden overtakes Blur, Yuga Labs offloads NFT games: Nifty Newsletter

Cross-chain trading

The ME token is designed to improve the capabilities of DApps by facilitating cross-chain trading of digital assets.

Although Magic Eden started as a Solana (SOL)-based NFT platform, it now spans multiple blockchain platforms and intends to integrate the ME token to drive its ecosystem’s growth.

According to the press release, with Magic Eden’s mobile expansion and the inclusion of the ME token, users will be incentivized “to trade any asset on the biggest chains at any time.”

“As the NFT and digital ownership ecosystem grows, other third-party DApps will continue to use these protocols and may formally adopt $ME.“

Related: NFT Trader recovers stolen Apes, Line’s NFT arm raises $140M: Nifty Newsletter

Magic Eden platform growth

The press release highlights the Magic Eden platform’s growth, stating that it “has surpassed” $6 billion in total trading volume and represents over 60% of all NFT revenue.

This growth can be evidenced by the platform overtaking of competitors Blur and Yuga Labs by April earlier this year after recording $756.5 million in NFT trading volume in March. 

Magic Eden’s surge in NFT trading volume in March resulted in a 194.4% increase in monthly trading volume, outperforming Blur’s $530.4 million total trading volume. 

Related: Magic Eden passed Blur as leading NFT marketplace in March: CoinGecko

NFT investors could be victims of hype

Looking back at the peak of the NFT hype cycle, top-performing collections such as CryptoPunks and Bored Apes gained rapid traction from 2021 to 2022.

As of May 2022, the NFT market topped out with a market capitalization of $526 billion, only to a market cap closer to $18 billion as of Aug. 21 — a 97% drop in value.

This value loss for investors was further evidenced by a dappGambl report in September 2023, which revealed that out of 73,257 NFT collections, 95% had market caps of 0 Ether ( ETH ).

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