A Huge Breakthrough for Blockchain
Although Upland is a metaverse with an underlying real-life economy, where people play and connect with each other, we’ve always envisioned that a key part of our value proposition to players is the ability to convert value from the game, bringing it into the real world
In May this year we announced our partnership with Tilia, a subsidiary of the makers of Second Life, that will allow us to offer Uplanders the ability to trade their digital assets in Upland back to fiat currency.
Today we’re excited to announce that our integration with Tilia is nearing completion and soon we’ll be taking registrations for participating in the beta trial phase!
This will mark an incredible achievement. We’ve created the world’s first ever platform that offers true ownership of digital assets via blockchain technology, available on all platforms (including iOS and Android), allows purchasing using both fiat currency or crypto currency, AND allows selling digital assets back to fiat currency. This is all enabled through an ecosystem that not only meets strict regulatory requirements, but also has an onboarding that is as simple as any non-blockchain based game or app out there! Wow, that’s a lot, and we’re just getting started.
How It Will Work
Putting Properties Up for Sale
Your journey of converting value from Upland back into the real world begins with determining the digital asset you want to make available in the marketplace to sell for USD. The first type of asset that can be sold for USD is a property parcel.
When putting a property up for sale on the marketplace, Uplanders can choose whether they want to sell it for UPX or for USD.
USD Account Creation and KYC
The first time that an Uplander puts a property up for sale for USD, a USD account will be created in the background to store USD proceeds made from a potential sale via the services of Tilia. This account creation process requires KYC (Know Your Customer) verification, similar to what you would expect when creating an online bank or Paypal account.
About Fiat Transactions
Properties that are up for sale for USD will be visible in the same way to ones that are up for UPX. However, due to various app store restrictions and policies (first and foremost, the 30% service fees that app stores charge for transactions) the actual purchase will have to be made from either mobile-web or desktop via an in-app link.
Similar to UPX transactions, USD transactions are subject to 10% market transaction fees (5% paid by the buyer, and 5% paid by the seller). The 5% USD buyer fees will be used to move the equivalent UPX amount from the Upland UPX pool to the Community UPX pool, while the 5% seller fee will be charged when proceeds are withdrawn. Since the latter fees are charged by Tilia as a service fee, this 5% will not be used to add UPX to the Community UPX pool.
Buyers will also need to have a USD account created for them, but they will not be required to pass the KYC process (only accept Tilia’s terms and conditions).
Managing USD Balance
Once an Uplander’s USD account has been established, they will be able to manage it through their Upland profile page with the new ‘USD Balance’ section (which is not made public to other profile viewers).
This section will allow Uplanders to follow their account balance and status, and also allow the following two actions:
Buying UPX
The USD balance will provide a quick and easy way to purchase UPX currency if desired.
Withdrawing Proceeds
At any given time, Uplanders will be able to withdraw their USD proceeds directly to their personal Paypal account, subject to the 5% transaction fees.
Beta Release
Introducing the ability to sell blockchain-based assets directly back to fiat currency is an innovation both for Upland and our partners at Tilia. This is why this new feature will be rolled out in multiple phases.
Closed Alpha
In this phase, 30 Uplanders, representing different statuses Pro and above, will be selected for the program as potential sellers. These alpha testers will be able to start offering properties in the marketplace for USD. There will be various restrictions on the volume and value of properties that are allowed to go on sale simultaneously by a single Uplander.
Properties that are on sale in the marketplace will be available for purchase for all Uplanders, regardless of whether they have been admitted to the alpha program.
Closed Beta
This phase is similar to the alpha, but will be expanded to include 100 Uplanders.
Open Beta
In the open beta phase, all Uplanders will be able to offer properties for sale for USD, but the volume restrictions will still be intact.
Full Release
Finally, when the system is mature and fully validated to operate to our standards of service, volume restrictions will gradually be lifted.
We know the Upland community has been excited about this feature, as well as the unique innovation that it will bring to the digital asset world, for a long time. With every major feature release, we will continue to push the boundaries of what’s possible for a digital economy.
-The Upland Team
