Line Messenger’s NFT arm paid $140m for Web3 Services.

Next Line, a venture based on the development of the non-fungible token (NFT) ecosystem, has raised $140 million as it prepares to launch a global NFT marketplace in January 2024.

The next line is from South Korea, a popular WhatsApp-like messaging app set to explore Web3 initiatives. Peter Thiel-backed private equity firm Crescendo Equity Partners led the $140 million round of funding.

According to the announcement, Line Next's international NFT marketplace, DOSI, will integrate with the Japanese NFT marketplace known as Line NFT, and is slated to launch in early 2024. The new NFT marketplace will launch as a mobile app and will be available globally.

The company will use part of the $140 million funding to introduce new Web3-based services, including a social app that lets users deploy artificial intelligence (AI)-generated characters and Web3 games.

The Line NFT marketplace will use the Finxia public blockchain, Line Next and Crescendo will be governing members of the Finxia Foundation. Next Line currently hosts 5.5 million users worldwide.

Related: TON Blockchain Launches Blockchain-Encrypted Messaging Feature

In a recent Cointelegraph podcast, Shane Mack, co-founder of XMTP — an open protocol and secure Web3 messaging network — revealed the “enormous opportunity” to rebuild Web2 messaging platforms for Web3.

Mac explained how Web3 offers a new form of identity where people have assets and personalities tied to wallet addresses, but cannot communicate with each other:

“It felt like a great innovation to have the same wallet signature message proving you own what you're holding.”

Highlighting the unique capabilities of Web3 Messaging, Mack said Web3 Messaging is an important step in ensuring users have full control over their information and how they communicate on the Internet.

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