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Someone just bought virtual land for $2.5 million

Is buying digital land the future -- or a fad?

Headshot of Nelson Aguilar
Headshot of Nelson Aguilar
Nelson Aguilar
With more than a decade of experience, Nelson covers Apple and Google and writes about iPhone and Android features, privacy and security settings, and more.
Nelson Aguilar
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Facebook believes that in the future, we'll be able to meet up with friends in the metaverse.

Facebook

A Canadian investment firm recently purchased a digital plot of land for nearly $2.5 million in cryptocurrency, it said Tuesday. The purchase, at a total of $2.43 million, is the biggest of its kind on record.

Tokens.com, which focuses on decentralized finance (De-Fi), made the buy on Decentraland, a blockchain-based metaverse where cryptocurrency is spent to customize avatars, acquire real estate and interact with other members.

According to Tokens.com, the land is a "116 parcel estate in the heart of the Fashion Street district within Decentraland" and is equivalent to 6,090 square feet of land. It will be used to hold digital fashion shows and expand e-commerce services with fashion brands.

Facebook, which recently rebranded to Meta, is planning to invest $50 million to create its own metaverse that it says will be "a set of virtual spaces where you can create and explore with other people who aren't in the same physical space as you."