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Funko Shares Soar After Toymaker Strikes Deal to Enter NFT Market

Robyn Beck | AFP | Getty Images

The Merch Awakens: ‘Star Wars’ blitz before film opens’ Funko Pop Star Wars action figures line the shelves at Meltdown Comics and Collectibles in Los Angeles on October 30, 2015.

  • Shares of Funko are rising after the pop culture collectible maker said it acquired a majority stake in TokenWave, putting it into the NFT market.
  • TokenWave is behind the TokenHead app and website, which tracks holdings in nonfungible tokens.
  • Funko said it plans to launch its own NFT offerings in June. A new one will be introduced each week, starting at $9.99, it said.

Shares of Funko surged 19% in early trading Thursday after the pop culture collectible maker said it acquired a majority stake in TokenWave, putting it into the NFT market.

TokenWave is behind the TokenHead app and website, which tracks holdings in nonfungible tokens.

Financial terms of the deal weren't disclosed.

Funko, known for its dolls with oversized heads, said it plans to launch its own NFT offerings in June. A new one will be introduced each week, starting at $9.99, it said.

"Our strategy in this space is clear — bring the value-added NFT opportunity to our licensing partners to leverage our broad range of existing pop culture content across television, movies, sports, music, anime, video games and comic books," CEO Brian Mariotti said in a statement.

Funko has a market cap of $959.4 million. Its stock is up more nearly 414% over the past 12 months, as of Wednesday's market close.

Find the full press release from Funko here.

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