NEAR Protocol partners with ZEP to onboard users in the rising metaverse platform

ZEP, South Korea's premier metaverse platform, has officially announced a strategic partnership with the global Layer 1 platform, NEAR Protocol, on the 13th. The collaboration involves plans to establish a presence on NEAR Protocol, a blockchain network known for optimizing large-scale user-oriented services, offering a user-friendly interface, and ensuring stability akin to Web2.

NEAR Protocol has experienced substantial growth in the Layer 1 blockchain landscape, with NEAR-based decentralized applications (dApps) securing the 1st and 2nd positions among all blockchain applications according to DappRadar. The platform's rapid rise is attributed to its user-centric design and operational efficiency.

ZEP, a collaboration between renowned mobile game developer Supercat (famed for "The Kingdom of the Winds: Yeon") and NAVER Z's operator Zepeto, successfully launched its beta version on November 30, 2021. Boasting 1.3 million monthly active users (MAU) and an impressive 8.3 million cumulative users this year, ZEP has garnered significant attention from both domestic and international stakeholders. The platform's proven usability in the domestic market positions it for expansion into the Japanese and Southeast Asian markets in the second half of the year.

Mark Mi, Gaming Director of NEAR Protocol, expressed the significance of the collaboration, stating, "This partnership with ZEP presents a significant opportunity to extend the NEAR ecosystem into the new frontier of the metaverse." Mi emphasized the commitment to exposing NEAR users to diverse content across various domains. The collaboration aims to facilitate ZEP's business expansion in the Web3 domain through cooperative efforts with dApps in the content and gaming sectors based on NEAR.

NEAR Protocol and ZEP share a vision of exploring a business model that delivers varied benefits to users through their collaboration. Additionally, they plan to develop Web3-related features that enhance the convenience for developers and users alike. The partnership seeks to enable ZEP's partners to effortlessly issue and distribute a range of Web3-based digital assets, providing users with a seamless Web3 experience within the ZEP metaverse environment.