Berlin-based startup FUEL has raised $1.5 million in a funding round to further develop its platform, which will make it possible for creators to build their own custom NFT shops requiring no technical knowledge.
In the pre-seed round, investors included NYC-based FintechCollective, London-based Seedcamp, and Notion Capital with their pre-seed vehicle, Pioneers. Angels and experts like Bitstamp CTO David Osojnik, Gumtree co-founder Michael Pennington, and Indeed founder Paul Forster, also supported the round.
Created by Csongor Barabasi, Thanh Binh Tran, Stefan Tietze, and Patrice Deckert, the platform will enable creators to launch, manage, grow and sell NFTs using a broad range of tools that are seamlessly integrated into the FUEL platform and do not require any coding expertise.
Stefan Tietze and Patrice Deckert, co-founders of FUEL, said: “Last year, $25 billion worth of NFTs were traded globally, up from $95 million in 2020, and artists like Steve Aoki, Nas, Grimes, and brands like Lamborghini entered the space. The art establishment also sees value in the space, with brokers like Sotheby’s entering the market.”
Csongor Barabasi, co-founder of FUEL, explained, “currently, the barrier of entry for creators is very high. The market has outgrown the basic sales functionality of aggregation platforms like OpenSea, and creators need more tools to succeed in the next phase”.
In describing the company’s future plans, Thanh Binh Tran, co-founder of FUEL said: “The company is already working with “Tomorrowland-DJs Mat.Joe and several other yet-to-be-announced top artists and labels. We will launch several NFT drops in the next couple of weeks.”
