Spring is coming to the recent crypto winter, if Kraken’s inking of a global partnership with the famous Williams Racing Formula 1 racing team is anything to go by. The cryptocurrency exchange, one of the world’s largest, announced the deal on 28 March.
Williams Racing is one of the top four F1 teams, next to Ferrari, McLaren, and Mercedes. According to reports, Kraken branding will appear on the F1 team’s cars for the remainder of the 2023 season. Fans will see the exchange’s branding for the first time at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on the first weekend in April. The exchange revealed that this is its first partnership within the F1 realm. Plus, the exchange is on track to increase its global presence in F1 events from next year.
The newly inked deal will result in millions of F1 fans being made aware of the Kraken logo. The logo will appear on the rear wing and halo of the Williams Racing FW45 race car. Alex Albon and Logan Sargeant will drive the car and will also sport the logo on their clothing. Both brands will work together on the design of limited-edition caps featuring the exchange’s logo. This will get worn at specific Grand Prix events.
Williams Racing commercial director James Bower said that the team was proud of its partnership with the exchange. Now, two trusted and longstanding brands in their respective industries had come together. He added that both parties were looking forward to offering F1 fans new cryptocurrency and Web3 experiences. They’re also assisting the exchange to reach new institutional customers and companies through sporting events and networks.
According to Kraken marketing director Mayur Gupta, the exchange plans to boost cryptocurrency adoption in the motorsports sector. They’ll do this by launching digital collectible experiences. He explained that a few of the holders of the exchange’s top NFT projects can soon display their collectibles alongside the Kraken logo on the rear wing of Williams Racing cars at some Grand Prix events.
Gupta added that the partnership will help to show that cryptocurrencies and Web3 can have a positive impact within the wider automotive industry. He expects the partnership to demonstrate the combination of vision, excellence, innovation, and disruptive performance. He elaborated that this would make it possible to engage with the changes and the team’s global communities, and highlight the potential of crypto and Web3.
The new deal may indicate a change in fortune for crypto F1 team sponsorships. Until relatively recently, 80% of F1 teams had at least one crypto sponsor. But that changed with a glut of bankruptcies and a market with brutal price declines over time.
Mercedes jettisoned its FTX collaboration after the exchange entered bankruptcy following allegations that the exchange misused billions of dollars of customer funds. Ferrari dropped a long-term arrangement with the Swiss blockchain organization Velas in January. And Alfa Romeo ditched Vauld after last year’s troubles at the crypto lender. Singapore and France are among the countries that put restrictions on trackside crypto commercials.
Time will tell if the Kraken-Williams deal heralds the start of spring for crypto-F1 team partnerships.
