Yuga Labs raises $450 million to build an NFT meta-universe

Yoga Labs, the company behind the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) brand, a heavyweight in the "non-homogenized token" (NFT) market, has just raised $450 million at a $4 billion valuation. funding. Officials say they will use the funds to build a media empire around NFT, but will start with games and metaverse projects.

Yoga Labs is said to describe its metaverse project, called Otherside, as a "massively multiplayer online role-playing game" (MMORPG) designed to connect the broader NFT universe.

BAYC co-founder Wylie Aronow, who goes by Gordon Goner, says he wants to create a "gamified" and "fully decentralized" "interoperable world" similar to Player One. interoperable world," said Wylie Aronow, co-founder of BAYC.

Just a few weeks ago, Yuga Labs solidified its NFT moat with a series of big moves (acquiring CryptoPunks and Meebits from Larva Labs), bringing all three of the most profitable NFTs under its umbrella.

Last week, the company also launched the so-called "ApeCoin," which it claims is managed by an independent third party and has designated as the main cryptocurrency in Yuga Labs' assets.

CEO Nicole Muniz said it is working with several game studios to bring Otherside's vision to life.

The game's "metaverse" will not only be available to BYAC holders, as the company also plans to create a series of development tools to allow NFTs from other projects to appear in their worlds.