Magic Eden shuts down its Bitcoin and EVM platforms, as the NFT giant makes a sudden strategic shift

On February 28, the well-known NFT platform Magic Eden announced that it will shut down its Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) trading platform, as well as Bitcoin Runes and Ordinals trading services, on March 9. Additionally, Bitcoin API support will end on March 27, and multi-chain wallets will switch to export-only mode before being completely discontinued by April 1. The company will continue to support Solana assets, marking its official exit from the “Bitcoin Ordinals Trading Platform” main battlefield.

Magic Eden entered the Bitcoin ecosystem in March 2023, quickly capturing over half of Ordinals trading volume. At its peak, it controlled about 80% of the Bitcoin Ordinals and Runes market share, with native Bitcoin assets contributing approximately 70% of total trading volume. The decision to “close Bitcoin NFT and EVM trading operations” is seen as a key point in the company’s strategic restructuring.

Jack Lu confirmed on social media that the company will streamline its product lineup, focusing on the Solana ecosystem and Packs products, while also increasing investment in its crypto casino and sports betting platform Dicey, aiming to develop a “Solana on-chain iGaming platform.” He revealed that about 80% of operational costs were previously concentrated in business segments that contributed only 20% of revenue, leading to resource misallocation and prompting the company to shift its focus.

Dicey is currently in closed beta testing with around 200 users, but betting volume has already exceeded $15 million in the past two months. Management believes that the integration of finance and entertainment will be the next growth driver. In the future, the $ME token will become the core asset of the Magic Eden and Dicey ecosystems. The NFT buyback program will also be discontinued, with resources redirected toward tokenomics design and product iteration.

Founded in 2021, Magic Eden initially served as a Solana NFT platform and quickly became a leader in that ecosystem. The company has raised a total of $157 million, with a $1.3 billion valuation at the Series B funding round in 2022.

Amid the cooling of multi-chain NFT enthusiasm, “NFT platform transformation into crypto gambling and token trading” has become a new industry trend. Magic Eden’s strategic shift indicates a move away from cross-chain digital collectibles toward Solana infrastructure and on-chain entertainment economy. Future performance will depend on the progress of iGaming regulation and activity within the Solana ecosystem.