Stephanie Douse 
Six months after Softbank led a $93 million funding raise for the Sandbox, the metaverse game is reportedly planning another $400 million raise bringing its valuation to $4 billion.
According to a Bloomberg article published on Tuesday, the Ethereum-based NFT game is seeking $400 million at a valuation of more than $4 billion.
According to the report, the gaming Metaverse, which is majority-owned by the blockchain game developer Animoca Brands, is already in talks with potential investors for the funding round, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified.
The size and valuation of the new raise, according to the sources, are subject to change based on market sentiment and investor demand.
Sebastien Borget, the business’s co-founder and chief of operations, first hinted at the fundraising at the Non Fungible Conference in Lisbon, adding that the company planned to hire and acquire “aggressively” this year. It comes just six months after Softbank led a $93 million funding round for the game.
The Sandbox is an open-world gaming Metaverse where users can interact with one another and trade virtual items using NFTs.
It gained traction late last year after Facebook changed its name to Meta on Oct. 28. This sparked interest in the major blockchain-based Metaverse initiatives, such as Decentraland and Axie Infinity.
Following news of Meta’s pivot toward constructing its own Metaverse, Horizon Worlds, the Sandbox’s SAND token price surged over tenfolded in 30 days, reaching an all-time market valuation of $6.8 billion. It has since been updated to $3.18 billion.
A large portion of the SAND token supply is owned by the Sandbox. It sells virtual pieces of real estate called LAND within the game to earn additional cash.
When the multinational banking giant HSBC announced in March that it had purchased a virtual plot of land inside the game to connect and engage with its global audience of sports, esports, and gaming enthusiasts, the platform sparked widespread interest. Snoop Dogg and Adidas are among the other LAND owners.