GameStop has fired its CEO Matt Furlong, the executive responsible for launching the company\u2019s push into nonfungible tokens (NFTs).<\/p>\n

According to a June 7 statement, Furlong was terminated, while Ryan Cohen \u2014 a billionaire investor held in high esteem by memestock traders following the notorious GameStop short squeeze in 2021 \u2014 was promoted to the role of executive chairman.\u00a0Minutes after the company announced Furlong\u2019s termination, Cohen tweeted a cryptic message stating, \u201cNot for long.\u201c<\/p>\n

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Not for long<\/p>\n
\u2014 Ryan Cohen (@ryancohen) June 7, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
The company did not provide a reason for Furlong\u2019s termination. However, according to an 8-K filing made to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission on June 9, 2021, Furlong\u2019s contract specified 24 months of ongoing employment. In parallel, Furlong resigned as the director of the company, reducing the size of the board to five individuals.<\/p>\n
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Fun fact: <\/p>\n
Matt Furlong only had a 24 month contract with Gamestop <\/p>\n
that ended this week\u2026https:\/\/t.co\/GndJCl1VYJ pic.twitter.com\/sn4TJEdTCj<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 Victoria L. Bolton (@vickilaketta) June 8, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
The news came alongside GameStop\u2019s first quarter earnings call, which saw the gaming company report earnings per share that missed market expectations by more than 133%. <\/p>\n
The company\u2019s share price has plummeted to $21, currently down 19% in after-hours trading, according to data from Google Finance. <\/p>\n
Furlong joined GameStop as its CEO in June 2021, five months after the memestock frenzy that saw GameStop shares surge 3,000% from $17.25 to $500 within a single month. <\/p>\n
GameStop launched its NFT marketplace in June 2022, just as the market\u2019s fascination with NFTs waned. GameStop later added support for blockchain game NFTs on its marketplace, a move made possible by its partnership with Web3 gaming platform and Ethereum layer-2 scaling solution ImmutableX. <\/p>\n
The company\u2019s NFT marketplace debut was well-received, with nearly $2 million in sales in the first 24 hours of the platform going online. However, things took a turn for the worse rather quickly. By August, daily sales volumes on the marketplace were hovering around the $4,000 mark \u2014 a 99.8% decline from its opening-day frenzy. <\/p>\n
Related: <\/em><\/strong>Nike NFTs are coming to EA Sports games: Nifty Newsletter<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n
In December 2022, GameStop announced\u00a0it would no longer focus\u00a0any major efforts toward cryptocurrencies or NFTs, following a lousy Q3 earnings call that saw the company stack up $94.7 million in net losses and begin laying off staff. <\/p>\n
Despite these statements, GameStop recently partnered with the Australia-based blockchain game developer, Illuvium, to debut a 20,000 NFT collection. <\/p>\n
GameStop and Matt Furlong have not yet responded to Cointelegraph\u2019s request for comment. <\/p>\n
Web3 Gamer: GTA 6 crypto rumors, Dr Who\/Sandbox, Thai tourist NFTs review<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n