Meta Platforms Inc is cutting off support for digital collectibles or non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on its platforms less than a year after rolling it out, as the crypto market continues to spiral.

“We’re winding down digital collectibles (NFTs) for now to focus on other ways to support creators, people, and businesses,” the social media firm’s fintech head, Stephane Kasriel says.

The company rolled out support for creators to share NFTs on Instagram and Facebook last year, when the speculative crypto asset had exploded in popularity, with sales of cartoon apes to video clips touching billions of dollars.

But bitcoin and other tokens took a beating in late 2022 after major exchange FTX crashed into sudden bankruptcy.

The downfall was worsened by last week’s collapse of three U.S. banks, two of which were crypto-focused.

“We’ll continue investing in fintech tools that people and businesses will need for the future. We’re streamlining payments w/ Meta Pay, making checkout and payouts easier, and investing in messaging payments across Meta,” Kasriel says.

"Let me be clear: creating opportunities for creators and businesses to connect with their fans and monetize remains a priority, and we're going to focus on areas where we can make impact at scale, such as messaging and monetization apps for Reels," adds Kasriel.

The company rolled out support for creators to share NFTs on Instagram and Facebook last year, when the speculative crypto asset had exploded in popularity, with sales of cartoon apes to video clips touching billions of dollars.