Update: New Animoca Buys Somo As NFT Market Rebounds Early In 2026

Animoca’s Somo acquisition expands its digital collectibles strategy as NFTs show early signs of renewed trading activity.

Animoca Brands doubled down on digital collectibles by acquiring gaming and collectibles company Somo, expanding its footprint in Web3-native entertainment and adding Somo’s playable, streamable and tradable collectibles to Animoca’s portfolio of blockchain-based platforms.

The company said Wednesday it plans to integrate Somo into its broader Web3 ecosystem, leveraging cross-promotion, shared infrastructure and its global network of partners to accelerate the growth of the brand.

“SOMO is building the cultural operating system for collectibles, which complements our existing portfolio,” said Animoca Brands co-founder and executive chairman Yat Siu.

“By bringing SOMO into the Animoca Brands ecosystem, we aim to connect it to our global network of games, communities, and partners.”

The deal comes as the non-fungible token (NFT) market showed renewed momentum early in 2026, with market capitalization climbing 20% in the first two weeks of the year.

The global NFT market cap rose about 20% in the first two weeks of 2026, climbing from $2.5 billion on Jan. 1 to over $3 billion by Wednesday, according to data from CoinGecko.

The rebound marks one of the NFT market’s strongest short-term recoveries in over a year, following a prolonged market slump that weighed on prices and activity throughout 2025.

CoinGecko shows that a sharp jump between Tuesday and Wednesday accounted for a significant portion of the gains.

On Tuesday, the NFT market cap hovered a little below $2.7 billion before surging to $3 billion in just 24 hours, recording a $300 million gain. This was accompanied by an 18.7% increase in 24-hour trading volume, according to CoinGecko.

Source: CoinTelegraph