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E-commerce giant eBay on Thursday announced that it has acquired UK-based non fungible token (NFT) art marketplace, KnownOrigin for an undisclosed amount.
KnownOrigin was founded in 2018 and similar to other NFT platforms like Opensea, KnownOrigin enables users to sell and buy digital art with cryptocurrencies like Ethereum.
In a press release, eBay wrote, "This acquisition is an important step in eBay's tech-led reimagination, ushering in a new era of digital collecting to the world's top destination for collectibles."
Today, we acquired @KnownOrigin_io, a leading #NFT marketplace. Together, we’ll give artists a platform to share their creations with even more people around the world and further our expansion of NFT buying and selling on our platform. https://t.co/7Uhez4aCoB
— eBay Newsroom (@eBayNewsroom) June 22, 2022
The e-commerce company has been making moves to enter the NFT market since last year. In May 2021, the company allowed the sale of NFTs on its platform for the first time and just this year, the company dropped its first NFT collection — 13 limited-edition digital collectibles in partnership with Web3 platform OneOf, each of which contains a 3-D animated rendering of hockey legend Wayne Gretzky.
The acquisition might see eBay launching more NFT collections featuring other athletes and updated versions of iconic Sports Illustrated covers, according to multiple reports.
"eBay is the first stop for people across the globe who are searching for that perfect, hard-to-find, or unique addition to their collection and, with this acquisition, we will remain a leading site as our community is increasingly adding digital collectibles," said Jamie Iannone, CEO of eBay. "KnownOrigin has built up an impressive, passionate and loyal group of artists and collectors making them a perfect addition to our community of sellers and buyers. We look forward to welcoming these innovators as they join the eBay community."
1/7 The mission was simple: could we build a new platform that would empower creators and give digital artists a chance to earn a living doing what they love. pic.twitter.com/X5zCkJHj1B
— KnownOrigin.io (@KnownOrigin_io) June 22, 2022
Ebay's acquisition of KnownOrigin is but a wake-up call to industry leaders across the e-commerce space. Despite the crypto space going through a bear market at the moment, the news has been received as a bullish signal by many crypto enthusiasts.
The e-commerce giant's latest initiative shows it is betting big on the adoption of NFT and blockchain technology, a sentiment that co-founder of KnownOrigin, David Moore, shares with the company.
"As interest in NFTs continues to grow, we believe now is the perfect time for us to partner with a company that has the reach and experience of eBay," said David Moore.
"With more than twenty-five years building similar communities of passionate individuals, we are excited by the opportunity to bring a whole new audience on this journey. This is the start of a new chapter in the KnownOrigin story and we couldn't choose a better time to focus on building and innovating with the team at eBay. This partnership will help us attract a new wave of NFT creators and collectors."