Major toy brand Mattel has signed a multi-year partnership with forthcoming toy-focused nonfungible token (NFT) marketplace Cryptoys to exclusively feature its brands on the platform. Cryptoys is expected to launch in late summer 2022 on the Flow blockchain and is the flagship product of OnChain Studios, which has received funding from crypto-interested venture capital firms such as Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and Dapper Labs. OnChain Studios also plans to make a Cryptoys metaverse and other play-to-earn games where Mattel’s intellectual property — including Barbie, Hot Wheels and Masters of the Universe, among many others — will be made into playable avatars. …

Blockchain logistics firm the VeChain Foundation has signed a multi-year marketing partnership with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) worth nearly $100 million, becoming the UFC’s first-ever layer-1 blockchain partner. The UFC is the largest promoter and event organizer for Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) and VeChain’s marketing assets and brand will be integrated across the UFC in live events, in-arena promotion, social media and other areas. The deal is reportedly worth almost $100 million over a minimum five-year partnership, according to an anonymous source quoted by Sports Business Journal. The UFC’s senior vice president of global partnerships, Paul Asencio, said the …

Iota Foundation, a nonprofit distributed ledger technology ecosystem provider, has partnered with tech giant Dell Technologies to develop a data-driven solution for the real-time tracking of carbon footprints. Dell’s edge solutions team announced the onboarding of Iota, climate change-focused technology company ClimateCHECK and BioE to develop a solution on top of Dell’s in-house Data Confidence Fabric (DCF) and Project Alvarium initiatives. We've partnered w/ @Iota, BioE, & @ClimateCHECK to develop real-time carbon footprint tracking through a #data confidence fabric! Hear how #ProjectAlvarium accurately tracks carbon footprints w/ #DellTech Edge solutions. https://t.co/u5CxmbMBAL@Intel #IOTA #Sustainability pic.twitter.com/52RENnEW3X — Dell Edge & Telecom (@Dell_Edge) …

Crypto has taken over the world, and Formula 1 was no exception to the disruption. From nonfungible tokens (NFTs) and fan tokens to multi-year partnerships, the crypto community continues to support the F1 landscape in numerous ways. Monaco Grand Prix 2022 saw F1’s fastest pit crew, Oracle Red Bull Racing (ORBR), partner with crypto exchange Bybit to launch ORBR’s 2022 NFT collection — minted on the Tezos blockchain. The limited-edition NFT collection is made available via an auction, wherein bidders get to collect digital collectibles representing various aspects of Red Bull’s past, present and future. Speaking to Cointelegraph editor-in-chief Kristina …

Blockchain-based gaming, also known as GameFi, is an up-and-coming sector that could potentially be one of the primary catalysts for kickstarting the mass adoption of blockchain technology. WEMIX, a gaming protocol that operates on the Klaytn network, aims to get in on the GameFi revolution and this week, the project's native token (WEMIX) rallied even as the wider market continued to sell-off. Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that since hitting a low of $1.27 on May 12, WEMIX price climbed 269% to hit a daily high at $4.70 on May 25 as its 24-hour trading volume increased …

Decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol Injective (INJ) has partnered with Wormhole to integrate “10 new blockchains” to its network. Injective is a Cosmos (ATOM) layer-2 decentralized exchange (DEX) that offers derivatives, token swaps and sports betting prediction markets. It is also focused on interoperability via cross-chain bridging, and currently supports digital assets from Ethereum (ETH), Polkadot (DOT) and IBC-enabled chains such as Cosmos. Injective Labs, the protocol’s developers, noted in a Wednesday announcement that the partnership will enable users to transfer and trade assets across any chain that is integrated with Wormhole. “The Wormhole integration will vastly enhance Injective’s capabilities with …

E-commerce giant eBay has officially launched its first nonfungible token (NFT) drop with a series of tokenized collectibles featuring National Hockey League legend Wayne Gretzky that went live on Monday. The NFT collection depicts animated versions of Gretzky that were inspired by Sports Illustrated magazine covers. They come in four different tiers of rarity including green at 299 editions each, gold at 199, platinum at 99 and diamond at 15. The collection is up for sale on eBay’s marketplace now. However, the limited-edition diamond, platinum and gold tiers worth $1,500, $100 and $25, respectively, have already sold out. According to …

Despite being publicly endorsed by the respective mayors of both cities, MiamiCoin (MIA) and NewYorkCityCoin (NYC) have plunged 90% and 80% since their all-time highs. According to data from CoinGecko, the price of MIA has dropped 92% since its ATH of $0.055 on Sept. 20 to sit at $0.004 at the time of writing. While NYC’s value has fallen by 80% since its March 3 high of $0.006 to trade at $0.0014. With investors getting burned across many other crypto assets as of late, demand for MIA and NYC coins has almost completely dried up. Trading volume for the duo …

Fan token platform Socios has partnered with 26 Major League Soccer (MLS) teams to offer fan engagement experiences and rewards, but so far, no fan tokens have been announced. The biggest pro soccer league in the United States made a joint announcement with Socios on Wednesday, detailing that the partnership will help fans gain access to “exclusive rewards, polls, and opportunities” for the 26 partnered MLS clubs. Welcome to https://t.co/2FROhSNgw8, @MLS. pic.twitter.com/340He1OzQA — Socios.com (@socios) May 4, 2022 Although the announcement did not mention any specific fan engagement events, it stated that “MLS envisions that fans will be able to …

Blockchain network Algorand has partnered with FIFA inking a sponsorship and technical partner deal as the network becomes the soccer association’s first official blockchain platform. The deal announced on Monday will also see Algorand become a regional supporter in North America and Europe for the 2022 FIFA World Cup to be held in Qatar in November and December. BREAKING: @FIFAcom has announced #Algorand will become the official blockchain of FIFA, empowering the global football community with cutting-edge, sustainable technology. Read more https://t.co/LTTUqGNLNA @FIFAWorldCup #FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/LuEFTY3WK6 — Algorand (@Algorand) May 2, 2022 Algorand will also be an official sponsor of the …

Goldman Sachs is reportedly pursuing an alliance with one of the top cryptocurrency exchanges FTX. The CEO of Goldman Sachs David Solomon reportedly met with Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of FTX in a closed-door meeting in March to discuss various prospects of working together, reported the Financial Times. According to the report, the major points of discussion were around mitigating regulatory compliance in the United States and Goldman Sachs offered to help them, especially with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). Apart from regulatory assistance, the Wall Street bank also offered to help with future funding rounds. The latest report …

Thailand-based Gulf Energy has made strategic investments in cryptocurrency exchange Binance US and signaled its pursuit of a joint venture with the global Binance exchange as part of a targeted effort to gain exposure to the digital asset market. Gulf Energy disclosed in a regulatory filing on April 18 that it invested in “Series Seed Preferred Stock issued by BAM Trading Services Inc.,” which is the operator of Binance US. The investment in Binance US gives Gulf Energy exposure to “one of the fastest user scale-up exchanges in the world” well ahead of the exchange’s planned initial public offering, the …