Businesses around the upcoming metaverse continue to multiply. In this case, a new sector has already begun to move hundreds of millions of euros in the virtual universe, although it may seem impossible. This is real estate investment.
According to DappRadar, investments in virtual land and buildings skyrocketed during the month of December, reaching $100 million in transactions. Not modest figures, considering that just a few months ago the metaverse began to be talked about or that Meta -the matrix of Facebook- is still in an initial phase of its development.
As in the real world, the purchase of real estate in the metaverse is done with a title deed. In addition, the great importance of blockchain technology in the virtual universe makes sales contracts even more secure, which are usually paid through cryptocurrencies.
Most of the real estate investments that have been made in a metaverse have Decentraland as the protagonist. It is a virtual city launched on the market in 2015 as a platform that gives an idea of what the metaverse of the future will be like.
Its extension is divided into plots of land that users can buy, and it is divided into different districts and neighborhoods, just like a normal city. Its buildings and grounds are subject to the same conditions as real-world real estate, and the city is run by its users. It is, so to speak, the first virtual democracy in history.
Thus, several large companies have begun to acquire land in the Decentraland metaverse, among which the mythical auction house Sotheby’s stands out, which recreated its building in central London to put its collection of NFTs on display and put them up for sale.
In the case of this metaverse, the Canadian firm Tokens.com, owner of the Metaverse Group, invested 2.3 million euros to acquire a virtual space that in real dimensions would be comparable to half a football field. The land is located in the fashion district, so the investment firm thought it would be a good business in the future, organizing shows and digital fashion deals.