Sky Mavis raises $150M in wake of Axie Infinity hacker attack
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Sky Mavis, the creator of the popular blockchain game Axie Infinity, has raised $150 million in funding in the wake of a hacker attack that stole $624 million last week.
Binance led the round, and it will be used to reimburse user funds affected by the attack against Sky Mavis’ blockchain network Ronin Network.
Raising part of the total amount stolen can’t make up for the larger loss, but it can certainly address the company’s working capital needs in the short term. And Sky Mavis said its current balance sheet includes funds that will ensure all users are able to withdraw and deposit freely into their game accounts. Sky Mavis hopes to recover the funds and is working with law enforcement to do that.
Binance led the round. The Ronin Network bridge, which was shut after the hacker attack, will open once it has undergone a security upgrade and several audits, which can take several weeks. In the meantime, Binance is supporting the Ronin Network by providing ETH (Ethereum cryptocurrency) withdrawals and deposits for Axie Infinity users.
Sky Mavis noted that, despite this recent setback, Axie and Ronin maintain a dominant position in the non-fungible token (NFT) gaming space. It said that Axie Infinity has processed 10 times more all-time volume than the second largest NFT game.
Axie Infinity became popular in places like the Philippines, where the pandemic took a toll on the job market, and people turned to Axie Infinity to earn a living. In the early days of the pandemic, players learned they could earn multiple times the minimum wage to play. And once they started playing, they could level up their characters
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