Video Game Retailer GameStop Partners With Crypto Exchange FTX

Video game retailer GameStop announced on September 7 that it has entered into a partnership with FTX US, one of the biggest cryptocurrency exchanges. GameStop’s shares, which are down 35% this year, rose 11% in extended trading.

This partnership is intended to introduce more GameStop customers to FTX’s community and its marketplaces for digital assets. In addition to collaborating with FTX on new e-commerce and online marketing initiatives, GameStop will begin carrying FTX gift cards in select stores. During the term of the collaboration, GameStop will be FTX’s preferred retail partner in the United States.

GameStop launched a digital asset wallet in May to allow gamers to store, send and receive cryptocurrencies and NFTs. In July, the company rolled out an NFT marketplace to trade those assets. The company’s NFT marketplace is a non-custodial, Ethereum Layer 2-based marketplace that enables parties to truly own their digital assets, which are represented and secured on the blockchain.

However, according to data from DappRadar, GameStop NFT has generated roughly $113,300 worth of sales volume over the past 24 hours. The latest figures mark a significant decrease from the project’s first full day of business on July 13, which saw an NFT sales volume of $1.98 million.

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The video game retailer’s pivot to NFTs didn’t boost its financial performance much. Its net sales were $1.136 billion for the second quarter of this year, compared to $1.183 billion in the prior year’s second quarter, falling short of analysts’ estimates. The company’s net loss reached $108.7 million in the 13 weeks ended July 30 this year.