HSBC (HSBC), which has close to $3 trillion US Dollars in assets will be the first global bank to join The Sandbox metaverse. The Sandbox metaverse announced the partnership via its website Wednesday, March 16th, 2022.

The announcement states that the partnership “will see HSBC take the sports engagement to a new level in gaming metaverse.” The innovative partnership between HSBC and The Sandbox will entail HSBC acquiring a plot of Land in The Sandbox Metaverse, which is sold as an NFT. Several corresponding plots of land or NFTs are likely to be purchased in order to showcase a larger virtual footprint. The virtual land plot will then be developed in order to engage and connect with sports, e-sports and gaming enthusiasts.
HSBC chief marketing officer at HSBC Asia-Pacific Suresh Balaji stated, HSBC sees “great potential” in creating “new experiences through emerging platforms.” The partnership with The Sandbox will allow the financial service provider to “create innovative brand experiences for new and existing customers,” he added.

The Sandbox has emerged as a metaverse industry leader with many global companies and celebrities partnering with the sandbox and buying up virtual land plots via NFTs. Some of the brands include The Walking Dead, Snoop Dogg, Paris Hilton, Adidas and Gucci. In a similar news story, JP Morgan (JPM) said it was the first financial service provider to enter the metaverse when it recently purchased a virtual plot of land in a competitor metaverse ‘Decentraland‘. JP Morgan plans to build a lounge for its customers with their NFT ownership of the virtual land.