Axie Infinity and The Sandbox lead drop in metaverse tokens as altcoins follow bitcoin lower

markets.businessinsider.com:

Axie Infinity media kit

Bitcoin is tumbling, and it's taking metaverse tokens with it. 

On Thursday, as the world's largest cryptocurrency dropped 9%, metaverse tokens Axie Infinity, the Sandbox, and Enjin Coin also tumbled.

Axie Infinity, the token behind its namesake play-to-earn game and the largest metaverse coin by market value, slumped 16.8% to $78.30 in the last 24 hours, according to CoinGecko data.

The Sandbox, the second largest metaverse coin, slumped 6.6% to $5.20 in the last day, while major gaming token Enjin coin slumped 7.5% to $2.53, the data showed. Decentraland, the third largest token, avoided the rout and rose slightly. 

The drop in cryptocurrencies began Wednesday after the US Federal Reserve said it may begin tightening monetary policy faster than previously expected as it grapples with inflation running at a nearly 40-year high. 

Major cryptocurrencies ethereum, binance coin, and solana also slumped as risk assets were battered by the Fed hawkishness.

While bitcoin hit an all-time high $69,000 in 2021, its percent gains were meager compared to metaverse tokens. Previous data from Macro Hive showed five coins — Axie Infinity, Decentraland, Sandbox, Enjin Coin, and GALA — surged an eye-popping 37,000% through November last year, while bitcoin just doubled its price.  

People have flocked to crypto games like Axie Infinity as a way to make money in virtual worlds. The tokens used in such games got a boost when the parent company of Facebook rebranded to Meta Platforms, in a sign of its push into the future of the internet that's been dubbed both the metaverse and Web3 — a futuristic virtual world where people can game, shop, work, and interact.