By Michael Scott
Upland, an EOS-founded metaverse game, enhances its Series A raise with intentions to link its Spark Utility token to Ethereum as Sparklet. On Friday, Upland, a blockchain real estate trading and collecting game, revealed a Series A extension raise of $7M.
This extension was spearheaded by EOS Network Ventures in the fund’s initial crypto gaming investment and came after an earlier $18M Series A raised two years ago.
Upland Games Raise $7 Million in a Funding Round
The capital injection will play a vital role in increasing features for the location-founded game, which allows players to use a real-world map to buy digital locations.
Besides, Uplands seeks to strengthen its marketing strategy, introduce an Ethereum token linked to its present in-game utility token, and empower third-party developer tools.
Before the announcement, Dirk Lueth, Upland co-founder and chief executive officer claimed the metaverse is quite far from its death. Upland started as a property trading game in 2019, following inspiration from Monopoly, a board game. It permits players to purchase and sell digital forms of real-world properties.
Additionally, it has included treasure hunting, cafes, and vehicles, and in the future, it intends to hold fashion week ceremonies. Uplands says more than 3 million players are registered, which includes nearly 30,000 everyday active users.
In addition, it has entered into a formal agreement with major sports organizations, for instance, the National Football League Players Association and FIFA. More U.S., Europe, and Latin America locations have also been added.
Uplands Seeks to Expand its Game Offering
Localized interest drives Upland’s geographic strategy. Leuth acknowledged its present collaboration with ON1 Force, an anime-style profile picture nonfungible token (NFT) initiative, which aided the collecting and trading game in penetrating the Japanese area by including Tokyo in the game.
Uplands is developed on the EOS network and has slowly expanded. The expansion continues amid the buzz linked to the ‘metaverse’ idea subsiding over the past year. Leuth is not deterred by the silencing buzz. Leuth told a media outlet that, ultimately, it is only a word and insisted that the immersive web
remains active. He referred to it as an ‘example of how things will occur in years to come.’ He also claimed that despite the possibility of speculators leaving, OMA3’s (Open Metaverse Alliance of Web3’s) existence indicates consistent development in space.
Leuth is OMA3’s current chairperson. OMA3 is a group of nonfungible tokens, blockchain, and metaverse firms, which includes big players such as Yuga Labs Animoca Brands. The Sandbox, and Upland. Currently, it focuses on the creation of metaverse standards.
Benefits of EOS Network
Over the years, EOS has lost fame. Its total value locked (TVL) is currently at $69M, thus ranking 23rd on DefiLlama. Additionally, this highlights a continuous dip with no indicators of ceasing.
CoinGecko’s findings show that in terms of total market cap among cryptocurrencies, the EOS token ranks 60th and is more than half a decade out from its highest price.
Leuth is not bothered by the situation. He said that when Upland was created in 2018, EOS was one of the feasible blockchains for this project.
Ethereum’s gas fees prevent its utilization. He also claimed that EOS was established as the ‘most appropriate blockchain’ for the needs after more assessment.
Upland generates 80 nonfungible tokens every second owing to the blockchain’s methodological attributes. According to the EOS Network Ventures Investment, supporters are still attempting to expand the ecosystem.
The Series A extension will also support Upland’s imminent intention to make Spark, its in-game token, marketable on Ethereum as Sparklet. According to Leuth, the choice to improve the game’s network is realistic. He explained it will boost Upland’s prominence on the open market.
Leuth claimed that Ripple’s promising court ruling also determined Upland’s initiative proposal. He also highlighted a significant benefit by saying that the token has never been sold to the team or investors, theoretically aiding Upland to avert the form of securities-associated analysis other crypto startups have encountered from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Despite the cryptosystem making a depiction of developing quick and breaking things, Lueth stresses a more permanent focus for the industry. He concluded by claiming that despite not occurring overnight, gaming will enhance adoption.