Magic Eden Expands Beyond NFTs with Slingshot Acquisition for Crypto Trading

TLDR

• Magic Eden has acquired buying and selling app Slingshot to broaden past NFTs to multi-chain token buying and selling
• The acquisition eliminates limitations like pockets setup, bridging property, and managing fuel charges
• Slingshot’s expertise allows buying and selling throughout 10+ blockchains from a single USDC steadiness
• Magic Eden plans to combine extra fiat-to-crypto choices by way of Apple Pay and Venmo
• This transfer positions Magic Eden to compete with centralized exchanges in a $2.5 trillion market

NFT market Magic Eden has acquired buying and selling app Slingshot in a transfer to diversify past non-fungible tokens and set up itself as a complete crypto buying and selling platform.

The acquisition, announced on April 9, 2025, will enable customers to commerce tokens throughout a number of blockchains with out the standard hurdles of pockets setup and asset bridging.

Magic Eden, which generated $75 million in NFT market income in 2024, is trying to broaden its attain because the NFT market exhibits indicators of contraction. Based on DappRadar, NFT buying and selling volumes fell by 19% in 2024 regardless of a broader crypto bull run.

“This acquisition is a serious step ahead in advancing the Magic Eden imaginative and prescient, which is to supply customers worldwide with a seamless and protected method to purchase and promote crypto and digital property throughout all chains,”

mentioned Jack Lu, CEO and Co-Founding father of Magic Eden in a weblog submit.

Streamlining Cross-Chain Buying and selling

Slingshot’s expertise permits customers to commerce from a single common USDC steadiness. This removes widespread limitations to crypto buying and selling corresponding to difficult pockets setup, bridging property between chains, and managing completely different fuel charges.

The app has attracted practically 1 million customers with its mobile-first interface. It at present helps buying and selling throughout greater than 10 blockchain networks with prompt token listings.

Magic Eden plans to leverage Slingshot’s expertise to supply entry to over 5 million tokens. The platform will quickly assist Bitcoin-native tokens as properly, increasing its attain to the unique cryptocurrency community.

“Pairing Slingshot’s group of product visionaries with Magic Eden’s best-in-class advertising and scaling capabilities accelerates our skill to have an effect on the way forward for crypto,” Lu said.

Enhanced Person Expertise

The mixed platform goals to simplify the crypto buying and selling expertise for each newcomers and skilled customers. Slingshot permits signups with simply an electronic mail tackle, making it extra accessible to crypto learners.

Magic Eden plans to combine extra fiat-to-crypto choices by way of platforms like Apple Pay, Venmo, PayPal, and credit score or debit playing cards. This may make it simpler for customers to enter the crypto market with out navigating complicated onramps.

The corporate additionally intends to introduce AI-assisted instruments. These will assist customers with token discovery and buying and selling choices, additional streamlining the expertise.

Competing in a Altering Market

This acquisition comes at a vital time for Magic Eden. Whereas the corporate has seen success within the NFT area, the broader NFT market is exhibiting indicators of slowdown. Not too long ago, NFT market X2Y2 introduced it was closing as a consequence of declining buying and selling quantity.

By increasing into multi-chain token buying and selling, Magic Eden is positioning itself to compete with centralized exchanges within the $2.5 trillion crypto market. Lu has said that incorporating Slingshot’s abstraction expertise will assist the corporate successfully problem these established gamers.

The crypto business continues to shift towards decentralized infrastructure. This development is pushed by rising considerations over transparency, safety, and consumer management in centralized platforms.

Whereas centralized exchanges have dominated crypto buying and selling, critics argue they contradict the core rules of decentralization. They will additionally create single factors of failure, as seen in earlier alternate collapses.

Slingshot has gained current recognition as one of many few platforms itemizing each token throughout a number of chains in real-time. Its strategy aligns with the rising demand for decentralized options that don’t sacrifice comfort or velocity.

The mixing of Slingshot’s capabilities into Magic Eden’s platform represents a rising push throughout the business. Extra corporations are working to supply options to centralized giants by giving customers higher management over their property.

By means of this acquisition, Magic Eden goals to turn into “essentially the most intensive and all-encompassing buying and selling platform in crypto,” in keeping with their press launch.