Magic Eden Shuts Down EVM and Bitcoin NFT Markets to Focus on Gambling
Magic Eden is officially done with Bitcoin Ordinals and Ethereum NFTs. The platform just announced it is shutting down these markets to shift toward “Dicey,” its new online gambling platform.
It is a brutal, sudden shift that leaves multichain users scrambling while the company chases casino revenue.
Update on @MagicEden and @DiceyHQ:
It is clear we're entering a new era where finance and entertainment merge. We are now 2 months into @DiceyHQ’s closed beta and are incredibly bullish on how things have developed (~200 users, >$15M wagered).
To give Dicey the focus it…
— Jack (@0xLeoInRio) February 27, 2026
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Magic Eden Says Bye To Bitcoin And NFTs
Magic Eden CEO Jack Lu confirmed the shutdown in a post on X, outlining a tight timeline for the wind-down. By March 9, trading for Bitcoin Runes, Ordinals, and BRC-20 tokens, as well as all Ethereum-compatible (EVM) NFTs, will cease completely.
The changes don’t stop there. The platform’s Bitcoin API shuts down on March 27, and the actual wallet functionality will go into an “export-only” mode by early April. This effectively forces users to migrate their digital assets to other providers immediately to avoid losing access.
Lu stated the company is “doubling down” on Dicey, their crypto betting site, citing a “massive opportunity” in online gambling.
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Why Now? Chasing Profits in The Gambling Sector
This is a significant retreat for a platform that spent arguably too much energy trying to be everything to everyone. Magic Eden was the undisputed king of Solana NFTs, but its expansion into Ethereum and Bitcoin Ordinals felt forced and resource-heavy.
The pivot reveals the harsh reality of the current market: trading volumes for NFTs have collapsed, while gambling revenue remains recession-proof. It mirrors broader trends where platforms are moving away from pure collectibles toward high-frequency financial products. We have seen similar shifts in tokenized securities and financial assets, where utility creates steady revenue that JPEGs simply cannot match right now.
For the industry, it signals that the “multichain” dream is expensive and often unprofitable. Magic Eden is cutting its losses to protect its bottom line, even if it burns some goodwill with the Bitcoin community in the process.
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Magic Eden Bets on Dicey Beta: Over $15 Million Wagered By 200 Users
Why gambling? It is simple math. In just two months of closed beta, Dicey saw $15 million wagered by only 200 users. Compare that to the shrinking fees from NFT trades, and the business logic becomes undeniable.
Lu described this as entering a new era where “finance and entertainment merge,” a polite way of saying casinos make more money than digital art. The platform plans to launch a sportsbook soon, competing directly with giants like Stake.
While this makes sense for their balance sheet, it leaves a gap in the market. Bitcoin Ordinals infrastructure is already technically complex, facing challenges ranging from network congestion to theoretical threats from advanced computing. Losing a major marketplace like Magic Eden makes the user experience for Bitcoin artists significantly harder.
If you hold Bitcoin Ordinals, Runes, or Ethereum NFTs on Magic Eden, you need to move them now. Do not wait for the deadline.
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Key Takeaways
- Magic Eden will shut down its EVM and Bitcoin NFT marketplaces on March 9.
- Users MUST withdraw assets to external wallets before the April 1 wallet deadline or risk losing access.
- The company is redirecting resources to “Dicey,” its new crypto gambling platform, after seeing high user engagement.
The post Magic Eden Shuts Down EVM and Bitcoin NFT Markets to Focus on Gambling appeared first on 99Bitcoins.
