Yuga Labs, the company behind the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) non-fungible tokens (NFT), has partnered with Solana-based NFT marketplace Magic Eden to launch a new Ethereum-based marketplace by the end of the year.
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Fast Facts
- Magic Eden Ethereum will become the first major Ethereum-based NFT marketplace that is contractually obligated to honor creator royalties, Yuga Labs said in a press release on Saturday.
- “We remain committed to the betterment of the Web3 creator ecosystem, steadfast in our belief that we should champion creators who are the heart and soul of the industry,” said Jack Lu, the co-founder and chief executive officer of Magic Eden.
- The current NFT bear market saw the Forkast 500 NFT index fall over 54% year-to-date, while blue-chip collections like the BAYC shed over 59% of their floor price in the same period.
- OpenSea, often ranked as the world’s largest NFT marketplace by volume, announced Friday on X (formerly Twitter) that it reduced its headcount.
- “We are immensely grateful for the contributions of those who are leaving OpenSea, and we are supporting them with a robust package consisting of both financial and non-financial support. With these changes, we are better positioned to deliver for the community, shipping high-impact efforts and matching the speed at which this space evolves,” an OpenSea spokesperson told Forkast.
- In August, OpenSea cut creator royalties on its platform, making them optional. Several artists told Forkast that OpenSea’s decision has driven their search for alternative platforms.
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(Update adds comment from OpenSea)