Meta to Cut NFT Support on Its Platforms Less Than a Year After Rollout Amid Unstable Crypto Market

The company rolled out support for creators to share NFTs on Instagram and Facebook last year.

By Reuters | Updated: 14 March 2023 11:57 IST

Meta to Cut NFT Support on Its Platforms Less Than a Year After Rollout Amid Unstable Crypto Market

Photo Credit: Reuters

Major crypto exchange FTX crashed into sudden bankruptcy in late 2022

Highlights

Bitcoin and other tokens took a beating in late 2022
Downfall of tokens was worsened by last week's collapse of three US banks
Meta added a host of new features to Instagram in November last year

Meta Platforms is cutting off support for digital collectibles or non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on its platforms less than a year after rolling it out, as the crypto market continues to spiral.

"We're winding down digital collectibles (NFTs) for now to focus on other ways to support creators, people, and businesses," the social media firm's fintech head, Stephane Kasriel, tweeted on Monday.

The company rolled out support for creators to share NFTs on Instagram and Facebook last year, when the speculative crypto asset had exploded in popularity, with sales of cartoon apes to video clips touching billions of dollars.

[Sponsored] Samsung Galaxy S24: The Ultimate Camera Phone With Smarter On-Device AI

But Bitcoin and other tokens took a beating in late 2022 after major exchange FTX crashed into sudden bankruptcy.

The downfall was worsened by last week's collapse of three US banks, two of which were crypto-focused.

"We'll continue investing in fintech tools that people and businesses will need for the future. We're streamlining payments w/ Meta Pay, making checkout and payouts easier, and investing in messaging payments across Meta," Kasriel said.

2023’s Biggest Crypto Hack Costs Euler Finance Over $177 Million: Details

In November last year, Meta had added a host of new features to Instagram, including a tool to trade digital collectables to help content creators monetize their presence on the social media platform.

Users could support creators by buying their NFTs directly within Instagram, the company had said.

Earlier this month, Meta said it was exploring a standalone decentralised social network for sharing text updates, in what could be a direct competitor to billionaire Elon Musk's Twitter.

"We're exploring a standalone decentralised social network for sharing text updates. We believe there's an opportunity for a separate space where creators and public figures can share timely updates about their interests," a Meta spokesperson told Reuters in an emailed statement.

The Xiaomi 13 Pro has a hefty price tag compared to the company's 2022 flagship model. How does it fare against other high-end phones launched in 2023? We discuss this on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.

Affiliate links may be automatically generated - see our ethics statement for details.

Comments

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who'sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.