Robinhood, a stock trading website, has announced intentions to launch a new digital Web3 wallet that would allow users to store and connect their NFTs to online marketplaces for the first time.

The company said in a news release on Tuesday that its new non-custodial “Robinhood 3” wallet will allow users to keep their own crypto keys, earn yield, and trade or swap crypto, including non-fungible tokens, without paying network fees. The corporation also stated that there will be no transaction commissions.

Vlad Tenev, co-founder and CEO of Robinhood, said the goal was to simplify the sometimes “clunky” and “cumbersome” architecture found in decentralized banking, Web3, and non-custodial wallets at Blockwork’s Permissionless event in West Palm Beach, Florida on Tuesday.

“There has to be a way to combine all of the security and privacy benefits of self-custody with the low-cost simplicity and mobile-first design that you’ve come to expect from TradFi products,” Tenev stated before showing a live audience a promotional film for Robinhood’s wallet.

The move is a huge step forward for Robinhood, which previously only permitted customers to buy and hold cryptoassets within their trading accounts. In February 2021, the app expressed interest in allowing transfers outside of its platform due to the growing popularity of cryptocurrency.

Robinhood eventually gave in to public pressure and created a beta version of their first digital wallet, which was first available to 1,000 clients in January. Following a long backlog, that number has risen to two million users.

Bitcoin, bitcoin cash, bitcoin SV, dogecoin, ether, ether classic, and litecoin are the only assets supported by that wallet at the moment.

“At Robinhood, we believe that cryptocurrency is more than just an asset class,” Tenev said in a statement. “With our web3 wallet, everyone will be able to hold their own keys and take use of all the benefits that the open financial system has to offer.”

While Tenev’s remark makes it plain that Robinhood’s stance on cryptocurrency has shifted in recent years, no explanation for the company’s two-pronged crypto wallet strategy was provided.

By the time of publication, Blockworks had attempted to contact Robinhood on the subject but had not received a response.

The app’s latest Web3 wallet will be offered to select clients on a waitlist who will join its Beta program early this summer, similar to the original run of its crypto wallet.

By the end of the year, Robinhood wants to make the product available to all of its consumers.

Fireblocks, a digital assets custody platform, announced the debut of their new Web3 Engine to assist encourage the development of the Web3 ecosystem as the world moves closer to a decentralized future.

The dedicated Web3 engine contains a set of tools for developers to create goods and services in decentralized finance (DeFi), GameFi, and nonfungible currencies, the business revealed on Tuesday (NFT). For alternative asset managers and capital market participants, Fireblocks has opened up a world of decentralized programs (DApps), exchanges, NFT markets, and more.

“Web3 is the future,” Fireblocks CEO Michael Shaulov said, adding that “the Internet has already entered a new era.” According to Shaulov, in order for the Web3 ecosystem to continue to grow, the community must address a major issue: security.

Fireblocks’ new Web3 Engine, according to the announcement, makes it simple for developers to build DApps on top of Fireblocks’ tech stack or securely access the entire spectrum of current web3 apps. Web3 companies such as Animoca, Stardust, MoonPay, Xternity Games, Griffin Gaming, Wirex, Celsius, and Utopian Labs use Fireblocks to secure themselves from human mistake and hackers.

Web3 has sparked a lot of interest in the sector, as evidenced by the rise in market capitalization of Web3 coins in recent years. It’s an ecosystem that everyone can access from anywhere at any time, with no restrictions or middlemen. Many large corporations have made considerable investments in Web3’s potential.

Google Cloud has formed an internal team focused to developing services for blockchain developers and Web3-based application operators. With Metaverse involvement and NFT enthusiasm, industry titans like Meta and Amazon have entered the market. Square Enix, the gaming behemoth, recently announced that it would spend heavily in Web3 gaming.

Fender, a well-known guitar manufacturer, has filed three patents related to NFT with the US Patent and Trademark Office.

When it comes to developing, selling, or buying NFTs with the Fender brand name, the patents would suggest a purpose to make or protect its brand.

Fender filed a series of trademark applications linked to its headstock design in possible NFTs, according to GuitarWorld, including NFT collectibles, virtual products, pictures, artwork, video, and audio recordings featuring music and musical instruments.

Mike Kondoudis, a trademark attorney, noticed the application to the US Patent and Trademark Office, which was filed on April 28.

Fender isn’t the first guitar company to think about using NFTs. Billboard reported in January that Gibson, the legendary guitar brand and Fender rival, was preparing to join the NFT industry with six trademark applications connected to NFTs and digital goods.

Big brands, from Adidas to Gucci, have been fast to experiment with NFTs and the Metaverse as two new distribution channels. They’re still figuring out where they belong in the virtual worlds.

NFTs are being used by musicians to reinvent fan involvement

NFTs and the Metaverse are being used by many established bands and brands to redefine how they communicate with fans. Additionally, musicians that rely significantly on in-person concerts as a fundamental income source will find the revenue streams and royalties available by the sale of NFTs appealing.

Music producers and platforms such as Audius, DAOrecords, and TokenTraxx are collaborating with musicians to demonstrate the possibilities of Web3 technology and allow fans to be creative using NFTs.

As famous guitarists get involved in the NFT realm, guitar brands are naturally interested. Keith Richards sold one of his beloved guitars with an exclusive 1-of-1 Tezos blockchain NFT produced for $57,600 in January of this year. The guitar, as well as a digital replica in the shape of an NFT and a video of Richards signing the guitar, were all up for auction.

Since the beginning of the year, the number of NFT trademark applications has increased dramatically, with 3,306 applications filed between January and April.

Despite the applications, Fender has yet to reveal its plans for NFT.