Mike Novogratz, the billionaire crypto investor and legendary hedge fund manager and Galaxy Investment Partners, have invested into Worldwide Asset eXchange (WAX), a new decentralized marketplace that will serve over 400 million people trading video game assets each year. This marks one of the first reported investments of Galaxy Investment Partners since Novogratz announced coming out of retirement in an interview with Bloomberg in September.
Largely under the radar, WAX is a new blockchain platform that disrupts the $50 billion industry of video game asset trading that serves over 400 million people worldwide each year. WAX is the creation of OPSKins.com, the largest marketplace in the world for trading these video game assets with millions of users and over 200,000 new user registrations each month. The company says it has recorded over 150 million transactions over the past 18 months.
“Having a legendary investor like Mike Novogratz along with all of our all-star team of investors, advisors, and video game industry legends see the potential in our vision for the WAX platform is an incredible testament to what we have planned,” says Malcolm CasSelle, President of WAX and CIO of OPSkins.
“With OPSkins, we are the largest marketplace in the world in a $50 billion dollar a year industry. The WAX platform will allow millions of our users and the 400 plus million people each year in this industry to trade in-game virtual items across any country with only a few clicks and very low fees. We see the Blockchain as the future of our industry and we are essentially disrupting ourselves with the WAX platform. In fact, OPSkins will be the first user on the WAX platform.”
Novogratz and Galaxy Investment Partners join an all-star line-up of cryptocurrency hedge funds and investors, including Pantera, HyperChain Capital, Kenetic Capital, Bo Shen – founding partner of Fenbushi Capital, Blockassets, and others.
The company has also announced that Anthony Di Iorio, co-founder of Ethereum, Dave Anthony, a creator and developer behind Call of Duty, and Brian Fargo, founder of Interplay Entertainment and inXile Entertainment, have joined their advisory board.
The WAX platform also has the potential to encourage widespread adoption of cryptocurrency. Today there are just 4 to 5 million active cryptocurrency consumers across the entire globe. Compared with the 400+ million people who buy and sell skins – a technology savvy group of global consumers who are already well versed in trading, storing and safeguarding virtual items – WAX has a legitimate potential to bring a consumer force to cryptocurrency trading that is 100 times greater than the active cryptocurrency user base.
OPSkins does not officially disclose revenue, but by launching WAX it could be the largest revenue company to completely transition its business model to the Blockchain to date.