OKX, Man City Sign $70M Deal after Shaking Off Club’s FTX-Related Fears

OKX has expanded its deal with Manchester City through a new three-year agreement that makes it the popular English football club’s Official Sleeve Partner. The new deal is worth $70 million, the Seychelles-based cryptocurrency exchange told CoinDesk today (Friday).

OKX Passes Man City’s ‘Litmus Test’

OKX launched its first official global brand partnership with Man City in March 2022. Months later, it became the club’s official training kit partner for the 2022/2023 season.

The new deal unveiled on Friday at the Etihad Stadium in England builds on these previous partnerships. The agreement avails OKX of a bigger opportunity for brand positioning.

“As part of the expanded deal, the OKX brand will feature on the left sleeve of both the men's and women's first team playing kits and will retain its position on the left sleeve of the first team training kits, in addition to appearing across further digital and physical club assets,” OKX explained in a statement.

Beyond Man City, OKX’s portfolio of brand partnerships includes the British motor racing team, McLaren Formula 1 and F1 Driver, Daniel Ricciardo, Olympian Scotty James, and film promoter the Tribeca Festival. However, OKX told CoinDesk it passed Man City’s “litmus test” before the new agreement scaled through.

Sports Sponsorship Nightmare in Crypto Industry

In 2021, FTX and Crypto.com splashed over $1 billion on sports sponsorships, with the latter securing the right to sponsor the Ultimate Fighting Championship for 10 years through a $175 million deal. However, the collapse of FTX in November 2022 left several of the bankrupt crypto exchange’s sports partners and celebrity endorsers contending with multiple lawsuits, Finance Magnates reported.

In an interview with CoinDesk on Friday, OKX disclosed that its sports partners expressed worry about its business in light of the situation at FTX. However, Haider Rafique, the Chief Marketing Officer of OKX, said the exchange’s proof of reserves (PoR) convinced the sports collaborators otherwise. He added that partners such as Man City and McLaren Formula 1 even audited its PoR.

A PoR is an independent third-party audit to confirm that a digital asset custodian actually holds the assets it claims to have accumulated in its reserves to secure customer deposits.

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Kraken Crypto Exchange Sponsors Williams Racing F1 Team

<p> Williams Racing and Kraken, a popular crypto platform, announced a global partnership ahead of the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne. This marks Kraken's first-ever official crypto and Web3 partner of the Formula 1 (F1) team.</p><p>Kraken and Williams Racing Announce Crypto Partnership</p><p class="MsoNormal">According to a press release <a href="https://www.williamsf1.com/posts/315c4334-4ab2-4991-8557-066c8759b776/williams-racing-and-kraken-announce-global-crypto-partnership" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">published </a>on Williams F1's official website, throughout the rest of the 2023 FIA Formula One World Championship season, Kraken's logo will be prominently displayed on the FW45 racing car halo and rear wing. Additionally, the branding will be featured on driver racing attire and team headwear.</p><p class="MsoNormal">In addition to the partnership agreement, the rear wing of FW45 will exhibit KrakenNFT digital art pieces owned by customers sourced from third-party NFT initiatives during specific Grand Prix events. Furthermore, Williams and Kraken will join forces to create exclusive limited-edition caps for certain Grands Prix occasions.</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">?? Today we’re thrilled to announce Kraken as an official partner of <a href="https://twitter.com/WilliamsRacing?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WilliamsRacing</a>! Together we’re accelerating the crypto revolution on and off the grid ??More info: <a href="https://t.co/ASxKLrBlFo">https://t.co/ASxKLrBlFo</a> <a href="https://t.co/5RfIdkZKbZ">pic.twitter.com/5RfIdkZKbZ</a></p>— Kraken Exchange (@krakenfx) <a href="https://twitter.com/krakenfx/status/1640700416156397571?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 28, 2023</a></blockquote><p class="MsoNormal">"Kraken's partnership with Williams Racing shows what is possible when you combine a great mission with excellence, innovation and breakthrough performance. These are both iconic brands that have stood the test of time. We're excited to engage with both Kraken's and Williams Racing's global communities, showcasing the power and life-changing impact of crypto and Web3," Mayur Gupta, the Chief Marketing Officer at Kraken, commented.</p><p class="MsoNormal">With a focus on engaging fans and the community, Kraken will take part in various Williams Racing fan zone activities during the season. Simultaneously, the crypto <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/terms/e/exchange/" class="terms__main-term" id="b5da6e64-2afe-421d-9b81-16404b7d59d6">exchange</a> will develop content to inform and educate F1 fans about the objectives and importance of Web3 technology.</p><p class="MsoNormal">James Bower, the Commercial Director of Williams Racing, expressed his pride and excitement about the partnership with Kraken, highlighting that it unites two well-established and trusted brands from their respective industries.</p><p class="MsoNormal">"We're excited to get the partnership underway to offer our fans cutting-edge crypto and Web3 experiences, while also enabling Kraken to reach new institutional clients and businesses through our network and events," Bower summarized. </p><p>Brokers and Exchanges Bet on F1</p><p class="MsoNormal">The first FX/CFD company to bet on Formula One sponsorship <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/forex/brokers/xtb-is-on-a-roll-interview-with-ceo-jakub-zablocki/" target="_blank" rel="follow">was X-Trade Brokers</a> (now XTB) more than ten years ago. Since then, many more retail brokers have decided to partner with teams of the popular racing series. In 2018, such a partnership with the <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/thought-leadership/fxpro-and-mclaren-f1-team-extend-partnership/" target="_blank" rel="follow">McLaren F1 Team was established by FxPro</a>, which was extended in 2021, while a year ago, the popular <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/terms/p/payments/" class="terms__secondary-term" id="f1d2a713-da14-4a6b-8fcd-e8f360d07f45">payments</a> services provider, <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/fintech/nuvei-become-mercedes-formula-1-teams-official-sponsor/" target="_blank" rel="follow">Nuvei</a>, became a sponsor of the Mercedes team.</p><p class="MsoNormal">In addition, the cryptocurrency industry has experience in sponsoring sports and F1 teams. In 2021, <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/news/crypto-com-becomes-a-sponsor-of-aston-martin-f1-team/" target="_blank" rel="follow">Crypto.com announced</a> that it has become a sponsor of the Aston Martin F1 Team, and in 2019 FuturoCoin joined as <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/news/futurocoin-becomes-first-crypto-firm-to-sponsor-formula-1-team/" target="_blank" rel="follow">a partner of Aston Martin Red Bull Racing</a>. Unfortunately, the latter turned out to be a scam promoted by the fraudulent company FutureNet. Roman Ziemianin, the pyramid's creator, was arrested in late 2022.</p><p>Positive News for Kraken after Tough Months</p><p class="MsoNormal">The news of a sponsorship deal signed with a Formula One team is the first upbeat note regarding Kraken after a year of cryptocurrency operational and regulatory problems.</p><p class="MsoNormal">In November, the exchange announced that it was cutting its global workforce <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/crypto-exchange-kraken-cuts-global-workforce-by-30/" target="_blank" rel="follow">by 30% </a>in order to adapt to challenging market conditions. Less than a month later, it admitted that it was <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/kraken-to-shut-operations-in-japan-by-citing-weak-crypto-market/" target="_blank" rel="follow">suspending operations in Japan</a> due to the weak cryptocurrency market.</p><p class="MsoNormal">However, the real problems started after February 2023, when Kraken found itself <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/kraken-faces-sec-probe-over-unregistered-securities-listings/" target="_blank" rel="follow">under the sight of the US SEC</a> in connection with a listing of unregistered securities. Finance Magnates reported that the <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/kraken-shuts-staking-as-a-service-in-us-amid-30m-sec-settlement/" target="_blank" rel="follow">exchange shut down Staking-as-a-Service</a> and agreed to pay $30 million to settle with the market supervisor over its activities in the US.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Regulatory problems prompted news of a possible <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/kraken-to-move-from-exchange-to-crypto-bank-amid-us-regulatory-dispute/" target="_blank" rel="follow">exchange conversion into a crypto bank</a>. The idea was first presented in 2020 and has now resurfaced in the face of regulatory pressure.</p><p class="MsoNormal">In the wake of Silvergate Bank's downfall, <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/news/kraken-to-suspend-ach-deposits-and-withdrawals/" target="_blank" rel="follow">Kraken has opted to discontinue ACH deposit</a> and withdrawal services. Since 2019, Kraken has been among several crypto exchanges utilizing the Silvergate Exchange Network (SEN) for ACH transactions in the United States.</p> This article was written by Damian Chmiel at www.financemagnates.com.

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Crypto Companies Seek To Overcome The Crisis By Investing In Sports Sponsorships

The crypto industry is competing for million-dollar investments in sports against traditional brands including sportswear companies, soft drink companies, etc.

Continue reading Crypto Companies Seek To Overcome The Crisis By Investing In Sports Sponsorships at DailyCoin.com.

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Australian football league secures $25M deal with Crypto.com

Aside from being the first major crypto sports sponsorship in Australia, the deal will also be a first for women’s sports.

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