TL:DR
- Non-fungible token (NFT) portfolio management and social platform Metalink has launched its mobile application
- The all-in-one NFT app is now available on the Apple App Store and serves as a complement to Metalink’s website
- Several startups have been working on ways to simplify the process for NFT collectors, taking popular ideas from Web2 and bringing them into Web3
Funded by notable Web3 figures Guy Oseary, Gary Vaynerchuk, and MoonPay CEO Ivan Soto-Wright, Metalink aims to be the first mobile platform where NFT collectors can talk, track, and transact.
Non-fungible token (NFT) portfolio management and social platform Metalink has launched its mobile application, creating what it says is a token-gated space where NFT collectors can interact with one another, aggregate announcements, and track their portfolio performance. The app also plans to launch a transaction functionality later this year so users can buy, sell, and swap digital assets.
The all-in-one NFT app is now available on the Apple App Store and serves as a complement to Metalink’s website, which has already connected with 100,000 crypto wallets. The platform was launched in August 2021 as a private chat app for CryptoPunks collectors and expanded to include official chatrooms for other blue-chip NFT projects such as Bored Ape Yacht Club.
“Our goal was to make it incredibly easy for anyone to quickly and safely chat with holders of any collection in their portfolio,” said Metalink’s head of product, Adam Ceresko. “With Metalink, you simply connect your wallet and start typing. Token holders only, one chat per collection. No Discord, Telegram, or verification bots.”
Metalink also announced a previously undisclosed $6 million seed round with funding from an impressive list of venture capital funds and Web3 personalities. Investors include Guy Oseary, Gary Vaynerchuk, MoonPay CEO Ivan Soto-Wright, The Sandbox founder Sebastien Borget, former Coinbase Chief Technology Officer Balaji Srinivasan, DJ Justin Blau, Social Capital, Arrington Capital, and Sound Ventures. NFT collectors including Cozomo de Medici, Gmoney, Seedphrase, SobyLife, Tony Herrera, Meltem Demirors, and Farokh, as well as corporate investors Gemini Frontier Fund, Dapper Labs’ venture arm, BallerVC, and Genies’ Human Ventures also provided funding.
The Metalink app is intended to simplify the fragmented process for trading NFTs and building community. The platform automatically generated a token-gated chatroom for every NFT collection created on the Ethereum network, and holders can access those chatrooms by connecting their wallets and verifying their assets.
“The vision is to eventually not need to communicate through Web2 messaging apps and separately buy and sell through several different marketplaces,” said Metalink CEO Jake Udel.
Metalink also pulls live NFT floor price data as well as rarity trait data from multiple marketplaces to help holders accurately gauge the value of their NFT portfolio and track price movements in real-time. In addition, the platform offers aggregated announcements from NFT collection chatrooms, providing users with a scrollable feed of all major updates.
Several startups have been working on ways to simplify the process for NFT collectors, taking popular ideas from Web2 and bringing them into Web3. Metaverse-focused blockchain MultiversX recently launched its xPortal “super app,” combining elements of chat, finance, and artificial intelligence. Meanwhile, NFT management app Floor recently acquired NFT data platform WGMI.io to build out its portfolio management tools.
OpenSea, the leading NFT marketplace, has also agreed to work with Metalink to launch three official channels focusing on announcements, support, and user feedback. The collaboration follows a series of customer service and communication issues faced by OpenSea, including an “inactive listing” exploit and scammers posing as company employees on Discord. Despite these challenges, OpenSea posted its best month yet in terms of sales, with a record $5 billion in NFT trading volume.
Currently, only holders of Metalink’s approved NFT collections can access OpenSea channels. Metalink supports just nine NFT collections, such as the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), Doodles, Cool Cats, and World of Women.
Metalink founder Jake Udell spoke about the platform’s origins in a Rug Radio Twitter Space hosted by NFT influencer Farokh Sarmad (Farokh.eth). Udell explained that Metalink started as a private chat app for CryptoPunks but quickly realized the potential to expand beyond a single collection when 15% of CryptoPunks owners signed onto the platform with their crypto wallets.
OpenSea’s new head of community, Stevey Tromberg, has described the partnership with Metalink as an experiment. OpenSea will have dedicated community support staff spending a few hours each day on Metalink to assist users, all of whom will be marked as verified OpenSea staff.
This collaboration comes as Discord, the NFT community’s most popular chatting platform, has become rife with cryptocurrency scammers and hackers. Discord has shown little interest in adding Web3 integrations, causing many collectors to become wary of the platform for Web3 activities. Farokh expressed his bullishness on Metalink as an alternative platform for NFTs.
OpenSea has been working to improve its user protection measures, advising users to turn off their direct messages (DMs) and never disclose their crypto wallet’s seed phrase. Some users are calling for Twitter to verify an OpenSea support account to enhance the platform’s credibility and user safety.
