Upland, a blockchain-based metaverse platform, has raised an additional $7 million in its Series A funding round to further expand its virtual world.
With the new capital injection, Upland's total Series A financing now stands at $25 million following its initial $18 million raise last year. The funding extension was led by EOS Network Ventures, marking the venture firm's inaugural investment in a cryptocurrency gaming startup.
Keypoints
- Upland, a metaverse app built on the EOS blockchain, has raised $7 million in a Series A funding extension round.
- The funding was led by EOS Network Ventures, marking their first investment in a crypto gaming company.
- Total funding for Upland now stands at $25 million after last year's $18 million raise.
- The funds will support expanding Upland's metaverse through new features and tools utilizing AI, as well as boosting marketing efforts.
- A key goal is making Upland's utility token Spark tradable on external crypto exchanges, starting with Ethereum as Sparklet after a community vote.
- Upland has over 3 million user accounts and 300,000 virtual property owners. It offers features like property trading, competitive racing, and virtual shops.
Since its launch in 2018, Upland has emerged as one of the most popular metaverse applications with over 3 million registered user accounts to date. Built on the EOS blockchain, the platform allows players to buy, sell, and trade virtual property mapped to real-world addresses.
Beyond just digital real estate, Upland has rolled out various features and activities to drive user engagement on its metaverse. These include operating virtual shops, participating in treasure hunts, car racing, and hosting fashion events.
According to Dirk Lueth, co-founder and co-CEO of Upland, the fresh capital will enable the startup to accelerate development of new features and platform components powered by AI technology.
Additionally, a key priority will be listing Upland's utility token Spark on external cryptocurrency exchanges, starting with Ethereum. Through a community vote, Spark will be converted to Sparklet when launched on Ethereum.
This external listing aims to boost visibility and liquidity for Spark, which is currently only tradable within Upland's closed ecosystem. The move was also motivated by Ripple's recent legal victory, reinforcing that not all crypto tokens are securities.
Upland emphasizes it has never sold Spark tokens to investors, avoiding the intense regulatory scrutiny that has plagued many cryptocurrency projects.
While hype around the metaverse concept has dwindled over the past year, Upland remains confident that demand for interactive virtual worlds persists. With major brands like sports organizations FIFA and NFLPA on board, Upland envisions creating the most extensive digital open economy powered by true asset ownership.
Backed by fresh funds and its growing community, Upland expects to continue trailblazing the path toward mass adoption of blockchain applications. As both a platform and company, it aims to take a long-term view on cultivating utility and value creation for users.
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