GALA Jumps 20%, Leads Metaverse Index Gains

GALA, the eponymous token of blockchain-based gaming platform Gala Games, surged 20% in the last 24 hours, outpacing other major metaverse tokens as well as Meta’s stock.

• The move came after Gala Games said it plans to deploy $5 billion within the next year to bolster its non-fungible token (NFT) offerings by buying intellectual property rights and building a theme park.
• Reports say Gala will spend $2 billion on gaming, $1 billion on movies, $1 billion on music,and the remaining $1 billion to construct a theme park.
• Recently, rapper Snoop Dogg signed a promotional deal with Gala to create loot boxes to promote his new album, "B.O.D.R. (Bacc on Death Row)." Each loot box contains early access to one of the 17 tracks from B.O.D.R. There will be 1,470 NFTs minted for each song. The NFTs do not confer any sort of IP rights.
• On Tuesday, Gala also announced another Galaverse festival set for June in Copenhagen. The previous Galaverse event, held in December in Las Vegas, was one of the first major concerts to occur post-COVID-19.
• Other major metaverse tokens such as MANA and SAND also posted gains.
• MANA is the token of decentralized virtual reality platform Decentraland, while SAND is the token of Ethereum-based virtual gaming platform, The Sandbox. Metaverse refers to the immersive digital world created by the combination of virtual reality, augmented reality.
• MANA was up 11% on day, per CoinGecko, while SAND posted gains of 7%. The Super Bowl crypto ad lineup was cited as a reason for the gains, according to chatter on Discord channels.
• During the Super Bowl, which brought in higher-than-average TV audiences compared to prior years, Miller Lite ran a metaverse-themed ad and ran a metaverse bar.
• Meta, the company formerly known as Facebook, also showcased a commercial during the game to advertise its Meta Quest 2 headset. However, reactions from the broader public were mixed. Meta Platform’s stock was down 1% as the company struggles to meet shareholder expectations post-transition.

Read more: Why You Should Curb Your Enthusiasm About the 'Crypto Bowl'

UPDATE (Feb. 15, 12:33 UTC): Adds descriptor for Gala Games and link to metaverse explainer in first paragraph, adds descriptors for metaverse, MANA and SAND in sixth bullet.