GameStop is moving more and more into the future of video games and has decided to jump on the blockchain bandwagon. After making the creation of its NFT-dedicated marketplace official last July, the Texas-based video game company has just announced a partnership with the American cryptocurrency giant. Crypto, NFT and gaming: FTX and GameStop walk hand in hand towards web 3.
Gamestop continues its adventure into web 3…
2022 started with the creation of a division dedicated to web 3 in January. Then, last July, a marketplace for NFT was created. Matt Furlong, the group’s CEO, recently stated that his group would “pursue long-term growth in the cryptocurrency, NFT and Web 3.0 sectors”. And from words to deeds, it’s just a step that GameStop has just taken, announcing a preferred partnership with FTX.
Despite the rather disappointing first results regarding the sale of NFT, the CEO remains confident in the future and wants to go further in the experience. He acknowledges that the daily volume of $113,000 is below his expectations, as is the overall revenue of his company. However, given the macroeconomic environment, it’s difficult to draw any short-term lessons. And this new agreement with Sam Bankman-Fried’s company gives him good reason to hope for a turnaround in his accounts.
…with FTX as a privileged partner
For the past few months, FTX has been a scarecrow in the cryptocurrency sector and has been posing as one of the world leaders. The contours of the agreement are not entirely clear to the press, which has only had access to partial information. It is known that GameStop and its 2,970 or so stores in the United States will offer FTX gift cards. This will make it “FTX’s preferred retail partner in the United States”.
However, Furlong and his teams are looking beyond that to create “something unique in the retail world. It’s not yet clear what FTX’s quid pro quo will be in this deal or how GameStop will benefit from its partner’s aura. Also, the press release does not provide any financial details. Therefore, it is difficult to know at this point who really stands to gain from this agreement.
In any case, FTX is strategically advancing its business all over the world and is constantly expanding its empire. Its finances are in good shape. Its CEO has become a media darling, and they’re hiring like crazy to prepare for the years to come. GameStop is probably making a nice move by showing up alongside FTX. But let’s not forget that video game stores have a large community. This community could be susceptible to the sirens of cryptocurrencies.
