A Plot of digital land in the metaverse sells for $2.43 million

A plot of land in the virtual world Decentraland sold this week for a whopping $2.43 million, more than double the previous record set for the price of virtual real estate.

Decentraland is a popular online environment where users can exchange cryptocurrencies for land and buildings. Users can also walk around the digital world and meet other users through customizable avatars.

This new online world gained traction in popularity after Facebook changed its name to Meta, to reflect the company’s commitment to growing its offerings in the so-called Metaverse, which has become the latest corporate buzzword to reflect what some executives think will be the next iteration of the internet.

Metaverse Group, a subsidiary of Tokens.com, spent $2.43 million on “116 parcel estate in the heart of the Fashion Street district” of Decentraland. That purchase was 618,000 mana, the cryptocurrency used in the digital world. The company said it will use its new virtual real estate to support its expansion into the digital fashion industry. 

“Fashion is the next massive area for growth in the metaverse,” Sam Hamilton, head of content at the Decentraland Foundation, said in a statement.

Even various luxury fashion houses, including Gucci Burberry and Louis Vuitton, have flirted with the so-called Metaverse, releasing NFT's and innovating themselves. Other retailers like Nike have been explicit about their commitment to capitalizing on the Metaverse movement, though it’s still unclear exactly what that will look like in the future.

This week’s multimillion dollar purchase of digital real estate far surpasses the previous record set in June, when a real estate investment firm paid more than $913,000 for property in Decentraland.