Cryptocurrency exchange FTX, which struck a naming sponsorship deal with TSM in 2021, is set to be acquired by its biggest rival, Binance. The news sparks fears about the impact that the crypto industry’s current difficulties will have on the esports landscape.
Binance founder Changpeng Zhao confirmed on November 8 that his company will “fully acquire FTX.com and help cover the liquidity crunch” for an undisclosed amount — a deal that will bring together two of the biggest cryptocurrency exchanges on the planet.
In the past few days, FTX “had been scrambling to meet a surge of withdrawal requests,” according to a report from The New York Times.
“This afternoon, FTX asked for our help,” Mr. Zhao wrote on Twitter, adding that Binance will conduct “a full due diligence in the coming days” and that it “has the discretion to pull out from the deal at any time.”
The announcement comes less than 18 months after FTX agreed to a ten-year naming rights deal with TSM worth $210 million. As part of the agreement, TSM’s teams across various games would compete under the name TSM FTX.
But shortly afterward, it was revealed that TSM would not be able to promote FTX in League of Legends and VALORANT broadcasts due to Riot Games’ guidelines about partnerships with cryptocurrency exchanges. In a surprising turn of events, LCS announced two months later that it had agreed to a seven-year sponsorship agreement with FTX, which became the league’s official cryptocurrency exchange partner.
In April 2022, FTX struck a one-year, $3.2 million sponsorship deal with Brazilian organization FURIA to expand its presence in the South American market.
It remains unclear if FTX’s financial difficulties and acquisition by Binance will affect the exchange’s sponsorship agreements, which also include a 19-year, $135 million deal to rename the Miami Heat’s home the “FTX Arena”.
Last month, TSM’s VP of Esports Dominic Kallas spoke with Dexerto about the organization’s forthcoming expansion into CS:GO with a European team. The move is part of the company’s expansion plan as it looks to increase its global presence.
TSM did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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