Mercedes suspend FTX partnership

German Formula One team Mercedes have suspended their partnership with cryptocurrency exchange FTX. The announcement comes after FTX having been put under investigation by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The company has recently filed for bankruptcy as well.  

As a result of the suspension of the Mercedes-FTX partnership, all FTX branding will be removed from the Mercedes race cars and other team assets.

Mercedes had brought FTX on board as an Official Partner in September 2021.

Reports allege that a house-owned hedge fund held billions of dollars in FTX’s currency and was using it as collateral in further loans. FTT, which is FTX’s own currency, has recently dropped to US$2 per token from US$25 in just a matter of a few days.

Mercedes released a statement, which read:

“As a first step, we have suspended our partnership agreement with FTX. This means the company will no longer appear on our race car and other branded assets from this weekend. We will continue to monitor the situation closely as it evolves.“

Apart from Mercedes, FTX also has a US$135m partnership with NBA team Miami Heat, who are set to rename their arena to “FTX Arena” till 2040. FTX also serves as the Official Cryptocurrency Brand of Major League Baseball.