Facebook, Microsoft… now Walmart? The Metaverse!
Companies / Metaverse Feb 16, 2022 - 01:37 PM GMTBy: Stephen_McBride
By Justin Spittler : The world’s largest retailer has its eyes set on the metaverse.
I’m talking about Walmart (WMT), where more than 240 million shoppers visit each week. Walmart’s not the sort of business you’d expect to dive headfirst into a brand-new tech megatrend.
But it recently revealed its massive plans for the metaverse.
On December 30, Walmart filed several new trademarks indicating its intent to sell virtual toys, sporting goods, and home decorations.
Walmart also recently said it will offer its own virtual currency.
Now, I don’t see “Walmart Coin” (or whatever it’ll be called) seriously competing with bitcoin (BTC) or Ethereum (ETH).
But this is still huge news.
It confirms what we’ve been saying for months. The metaverse is today’s biggest megatrend.
And many of the world’s richest and most powerful companies are investing big bucks to establish a foothold in it.
In a minute, I’ll tell you an easy way to invest in this trend. And no, I won’t encourage you to buy Walmart stock.
Before that, let me set the stage...
- The metaverse, in a nutshell, is a more immersive internet…
It’s a digital place where people can socialize, create, work, and play.
At its core, the metaverse is the next version of the internet. Instead of staring at a computer or phone screen, you’ll wear a headset that puts you inside a virtual world.
We’ve been pounding the table on this opportunity for the past year…
Last February, Chief Analyst Stephen McBride first introduced RiskHedge readers to the metaverse.
Then in July, I explained why the metaverse is the next frontier for advertising.
Not only that, we’ve recommended several ways for our subscribers to cash in on the metaverse.
At the time, those recommendations may have seemed like risky gambles. After all, hardly anyone outside of RiskHedge was talking about the metaverse.
Now, the metaverse is on the mind of every major CEO.
- As I’m sure you heard, Facebook recently went all in on the metaverse…
In October, the social media giant changed its company name to Meta.
And the move was more than a run-of-the-mill corporate rebranding. Facebook is shifting its entire focus from social media to the metaverse.
According to CEO Mark Zuckerberg, the metaverse is now a bigger priority for the company than Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp!
And Zuckerberg is putting his money where his mouth is…
The tech giant spent $10 billion on the metaverse in 2021. And it plans to hire 10,000 new employees to build this new version of the internet.
And Meta isn’t the only company building out the space.
- Fellow tech powerhouse Microsoft (MSFT) is in talks to buy Activision (ATVI) for $69 billion…
Once the deal closes, Microsoft will become the third-largest gaming company in the world based on revenue. That’ll put it right behind Tencent (TCEHY) and Sony (SONY).
Entertainment giant Disney (DIS) is also taking this opportunity very seriously. It recently announced it’s looking to hire an “NFT manager.”
As a refresher, NFT stands for non-fungible token. In short, NFTs are certificates of ownership stored on a blockchain. Think of them like virtual deeds that allow you to own digital items in a metaverse.
Nike (NKE) is also hunting for metaverse talent. In fact, it’s looking to hire a director of metaverse engineering, game designers, and blockchain experts. It recently acquired a digital shoe making company, and plans to release virtual products.
And South Korea's largest mobile gaming firm Netmarble announced it plans to launch a dozen new games using blockchain and metaverse technologies.
Even GameStop (GME) is interested in the metaverse. It’s going to create a $100 million fund to distribute to developers making gaming NFTs.
- This is just the beginning…
According to Matthew Ball, the metaverse economy will be worth up to $30 trillion by 2030!
For comparison, all the companies on the New York Stock Exchange—the largest stock exchange in the world—have a combined market cap of around $27 trillion.
Ball, who helped form the Roundhill Ball Metaverse ETF (METV), said in a recent interview…
Even if you have more modest expectations, precedent from the digital economy, the internet, the mobile internet, suggests that this is a $10–30 trillion opportunity that will manifest in a decade or a decade and a half. Our belief is that value will be widely distributed across the semis, the computes, the payment companies, virtual platforms, and other infrastructure providers.
This is not an opportunity investors can afford to miss.
- So, consider investing in metaverse stocks if you haven’t already…
One easy way to profit is by buying the Roundhill Ball Metaverse ETF (METV).
This fund invests in companies that have a presence in the metaverse, including Facebook (Meta Holdings), chip maker Nvidia (NVDA), and Microsoft.
It’s a good way for investors to get broad exposure to this megatrend.
Just remember that the metaverse will play out over decades. So, it’s crucial to have a long-term outlook on any metaverse investments.
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© 2022 Copyright Justin Spittler - All Rights Reserved Disclaimer: The above is a matter of opinion provided for general information purposes only and is not intended as investment advice. Information and analysis above are derived from sources and utilising methods believed to be reliable, but we cannot accept responsibility for any losses you may incur as a result of this analysis. Individuals should consult with their personal financial advisors.
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