NFT marketplace OpenSea has crossed $13 billion in valuation after raising $300 million in its Series C funding round Tuesday.
According to a press release issued late Tuesday, the round was led by Paradigm and Courtue with participation from new and existing investors. The latest funding is a sharp rise from its $100 million Series B funding in July which saw the company reach a $1.5 billion valuation.
OpenSea took the most out of the booming NFT industry in 2021. The NFT marketplace recorded $1 billion in trading volume in August and reached $2 billion soon after. In December alone, OpenSea recorded $3.24 billion in trading volume, likely coming from the recent Bored Ape NFT hype.
The NFT platform has listed four goals for the fundraise: accelerate product development, significantly improve customer support and customer safety, meaningfully invest in the wider NFT and Web3 community, and grow its team.
OpenSea co-founder and CEO Devin Finzer said in the blog post:
“We are committed to expanding the entire NFT ecosystem. This quarter, we are launching a grant program to give us the opportunity to directly support the developers, builders, and creators shaping the future of the NFT space.”
While many NFT marketplaces cropped up in 2021, OpenSea continued to dominate the industry last year. It is yet to see how the market plays out in 2022 as more companies and startups venture into the NFT ecosystem.
