The Sweat Economy raises $13m to onboard the next billion walk to earn crypto earners

After launching their move-to-earn app with a bang earlier this year, the team behind Sweatcoin has successfully raised $13m.

The Sweat Economy, which created the app that’s making a “healthier planet” and a “healthier, wealthier you”, has completed funding, including a private token sale, to accelerate its move into Web3.

Over 100 million people currently use Sweatcoin to turn their steps into ‘sweatcoins’, dubbed “airmiles for steps”.

These coins will then be matched with the cryptocurrency SWEAT when the app launches its new currency on 12 September with a token generation event.

So for example, if you have a balance of 500 sweatcoins when the launch rolls around, the app will match you with 500 SWEAT tokens to get you started on your walking, running, sweating crypto journey.

After that, users’ first 5,000 daily steps get converted into SWEAT (that’s the crypto tokens), and anything over that continues going towards sweatcoins.

The currency is built on Ethereum and uses NEAR as its blockchain provider.

And for anyone not interested in the crypto side that wants to keep adding up more sweatcoins, they can do just that, and keep accruing coins.

These can then be exchanged for socks made from plastic bottles, nectar energy sachets or noise cancelling headphones – though the items on offer in the shop might be a bit different tomorrow.

You can also choose to donate your coins to a number of different charities, or use them to bid on bigger ticket items, such as AirPods.

“Web3 onboarding can be daunting to many as it often involves a steep learning curve,” backer Spartan Capital co-founder and CIO Kelvin Koh said.

“Sweatcoin is providing users with a new way to exercise and earn, all while lowering the entry barrier and reducing the technical know-how.”

Other investors in the fundraise included Electric Capital, OKX Blockdream Ventures and Goodwater Capital.