The American video game company announced in a press release that it has launched a beta version of a non-custodial wallet to enable players and others to store, send, receive, and use cryptocurrencies and NFTs in decentralized applications on Ethereum.
The wallet comes in the form of a browser extension available for download on the retailer’s website. The news of the wallet comes ahead of the launch of GameStop’s NFT marketplace scheduled for the second quarter of this year. The marketplace will be launched in partnership with Immutable X, a layer 2 scaling solution focused on NFTs for Ethereum that supports fast and inexpensive blockchain transactions.
GameStop became the world’s first ‘meme stock’ in early 2021 due to a large and organized group of small investors who drove the stock price from around 18 to a peak of 325 dollars in a so-called ‘short squeeze’ of Wall Street hedge funds. The events, which began on the subreddit /r/WallStreetBets, made headlines worldwide and caused chaos in the markets as traders turned to AMC and other stocks. Using fresh capital and revived popularity to turn its business around, GameStop has since taken steps to embrace NFTs, launching a dedicated department to develop an NFT marketplace for gamers.
GameStop hopes that the new launch of the Ethereum wallet will help the company grow its customer base and attract them into its own Web3 application ecosystem.
