Animoca Brands Corporation Limited and its subsidiary Bacasable Global Limited, which operates the user-generated content platform The Sandbox, have announced that the platform has raised $20 million in funding. This latest funding round includes a valuation cap of $1 billion for the platform, further solidifying Animoca’s reputation as a pioneer in advancing digital property rights within the open metaverse.
The newly acquired funding will propel The Sandbox towards its goal of a decentralized virtual world. This world combines culture and gaming, allowing the community to actively contribute to and reap rewards from the ecosystem’s development.
Commitment to The Sandbox Vision
Enhancing earning opportunities for creators, updating Game Maker and VoxEdit 3D editor tools, introducing new social interactions for avatars, and launching a multiplayer rules system are all key areas of focus for future development. A mobile version of The Sandbox is also expected to debut in 2025.
Yat Siu, co-founder and executive chairman of Animoca Brands, expressed gratitude for the ongoing support, stating, “McKinsey estimated that by 2030 the metaverse could add $5 trillion to the global economy; today, games like Minecraft and Roblox are some of the most popular titles in the world, but they do not provide their users with digital property rights. The Sandbox represents the evolution of UGC games for the age of digital ownership.”
Growth and Milestones
Since its Alpha launch in November 2023, The Sandbox has experienced significant growth and reached several milestones. These achievements include over 1,000 user-generated experiences and over 5.7 million connected user accounts with crypto wallets.
Additionally, the platform has formed partnerships with over 400 global brands, including Lionsgate, Hellboy, and Warner Music. Currently, more than 100 branded experiences are in production and set for release throughout 2024.
The Sandbox has made significant progress in engaging creators and expanding its market. In the past year, over 330,000 unique creators have downloaded its no-code Game Maker.
Through various educational initiatives, boot camps, and game jams, the platform continues to attract first-time creators. Additionally, The Sandbox has successfully sold and utilized over 60,000 avatar NFTs from 19 branded collections within its virtual world. These collections include popular brands such as Hellboy and Rabbids.
Recent Developments
In the last six months, The Sandbox has achieved several milestones. It has allowed its 25,000+ virtual real estate owners to share their LAND experiences publicly.
Furthermore, it launched its Marketplace on Polygon’s L2 platform, allowing creators to mint and sell digital assets. These efforts have resulted in a bustling economy where users have produced over 11,000 unique digital assets and sold them over half a million times.
