After a dramatic collapse of the FTX crypto exchange, the Miami Heat (NBA) and Miami-Dade County immediately moved to sever the firm’s naming-rights deal for the team’s home arena.
The crypto exchange, based in the Bahamas, filed for bankruptcy in Delaware Friday, with former industry guru Sam Bankman-Fried stepping down as CEO. The move is still causing shockwaves within the crypto industry, and while we’re not going to wade deeply into the crypto waters, the important thing to note is that FTX’s naming-rights deal is dead and FTX Arena, per a statement issued by the team:
“The reports about FTX and its affiliates are extremely disappointing. Miami-Dade County and the Miami HEAT are immediately taking action to terminate our business relationships with FTX, and we will be working together to find a new naming rights partner for the arena. We are proud of the impact our Peace & Prosperity Plan — sponsored by County Commissioner Keon Hardemon and funded through the original deal — is already having in preventing violence and creating opportunity for young people across Miami-Dade, and we look forward to identifying a new partner to continue funding these important programs in the years ahead.”
As of now the crypto collapse has not impacted Crypto.com’s naming rights deal for Crypto.com Arena, home of the Los Angeles Lakers/Sparks/Kings/Staples. That’s not to say there won’t be an impact soon: trading on the exchange is down, per Coindesk, and withdrawals are up:
Over the past week, Crypto.com’s CRO token has dropped almost 45% on concerns the Singapore-based exchange will be the next to face a liquidity crisis. The exchange’s daily volume has collapsed from last year’s highs of around $4 billion to about $284 million this past October, according to data from Nomics, and withdrawals are on their way back up as users and investors remove their funds from the platform.
In the interview, Marszalek reiterated that the exchange has a strong balance sheet and said its exposure to FTX was limited to $10 million.
