F1

Bitcoin white paper makes its F1 racing debut on Kraken-sponsored car

The Kraken logo on the car includes the entirety of the abstract and introduction of “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System,” and has its next race in Australia.

The Formula 1 car for the Williams Racing team will feature an excerpt from the Bitcoin white paper as a result of a sponsorship deal with United States-based crypto exchange Kraken.

In a March 31 tweet, Kraken showed its sea monster-shaped logo containing text from the opening of the 2008 document released by its creator Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008. The Kraken logo appeared to include the entirety of the abstract and introduction, as well as the sections on transactions and timestamp server of “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System.“

The crypto exchange announced on March 28 that it would partner with the Williams Racing F1 team as part of a sponsorship and Web3 deal. The arrangement marked one of the first times a crypto company had sponsored an F1 team since many similar deals fell apart amid the 2022 market crash.

Related: Formula One files ‘F1’ trademarks covering crypto, NFTs and Metaverse

Practice for the next Formula One event is currently underway at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, with the main race scheduled for April 2. In 2022, roughly 420,000 people reportedly attended the four-day event in person.

Magazine: Billions are spent marketing crypto to sports fans — Is it worth it?

Back on track: Kraken inks F1 crypto sponsorship deal with Williams Racing

Kraken has inked a partnership deal with Williams Racing marking the first major return to F1 for crypto this year.

Formula 1 teams could be warming to crypto advertising again despite a crypto sponsorship exodus in the wake of last year’s high-profile meltdowns.

On March 28, American crypto exchange Kraken announced that it was partnering with the Williams Racing F1 team in a new sponsorship and Web3 deal. The move marks the first major crypto company to ink a new deal in Formula 1 racing this year.

The deal will not only involve Kraken branding emblazoned on the Willams race cars, but branded team merchandise and nonfungible tokens (NFTs) for team fans to collect.

The rear wing of the car will also showcase KrakenNFT customer-owned digital collectibles artwork from leading third-party NFT projects at select races.

Williams Racing commercial director James Bower said, “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.”

Several Formula 1 racing teams quickly dropped their crypto sponsorship deals when things started to melt in late 2022. In mid-November, the Mercedes F1 team suspended a partnership agreement worth an estimated $27 million with the embattled FTX exchange.

Furthermore, Ferrari abruptly ended a long-term arrangement with the Swiss blockchain organization Velas in January. Alfa Romeo dropped its sponsor, Vauld, following troubles at the crypto lender last year.

In September, Singapore put the brakes on crypto advertising around the track but allowed it to remain on the cars. Other countries including France also placed restrictions on trackside crypto commercials last year forcing some teams to remove them.

Related: Merch and perfume: Formula One trademark filing paves the way for F1 NFTs

However, some sponsorship deals have remained. The Aston Martin team has retained its crypto sponsors, Crypto.com and Socios. Binance remains the partner of the Alpine team and OKX and Tezos are still with McLaren Racing, according to reports earlier this month.

Meanwhile, the Red Bull racing team has retained its crypto sponsor Bybit and OpenSea is still with Haas.

Source: Bloomberg

Kraken’s deal with Williams Racing could be the beginning of a return to racing and sports for crypto companies in 2023 as markets recover.

F1’s Daniel Ricciardo cruises into crypto at Token2049

Formula 1 driver Daniel Ricciardo cruises into crypto as OKX performs a first-ever livery takeover of McLaren’s racing cars ahead of the Singapore and Japanese Grand Prix.

McLaren’s Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo sat down with Cointelegraph during the Token2049 conference in Singapore, discussing his recent involvement in crypto ahead of the 2022 Singapore Grand Prix.

Alongside OKX CMO Haider Rafique, the duo delved into a new partnership between McLaren Racing and the crypto exchange, exploring a variety of entertaining marketing moves between the two brands.

Ricciardo featured in a new OKX advert launched earlier this year standing alongside the McLaren MCL36 F1 racing car while his “spirit animal” honey badger sat in the cockpit of the vehicle. The tongue-in-cheek advert highlights the relatively unknown status of the cryptocurrency world, which continues to seek avenues to drive wider adoption of the space.

As the first point of order, Ricciardo admitted that he’d first explored the world of cryptocurrencies in 2021 and told Cointelegraph that friends had first piqued his curiosity.

“Last year I first got involved, I got my OKX wallet and it was really through a lot of curiosity. A lot of my friends were into it and then through the relationship with the team I got on board and I’m learning every day,” he explained. 

Formula 1 drivers are known for their propensity to push the boundaries in various aspects of their life and Ricciardo joked that his foray into crypto accelerated fairly quickly. The 33-year-old said he was trying to increase his knowledge of the space and saw the value of diversification that cryptocurrency markets offer.

“I was actually starting to get pretty involved to a point where a few people on my team were like ‘alright you spending a bit too much time on here.’ It’s great and I am certainly curious in terms of diversification and trying to understand more about the space.”

OKX meanwhile has explored creative marketing efforts through the multi-year partnership with McLaren, announcing a livery takeover for the next two stops on the F1 calendar. Bold, orange OKX branding is front and center for the Singapore and Japan Grand Prix races and Ricciardo believes the efforts will draw more fans into the world of cryptocurrencies.

Ricciardo said the new livery in Singapore and Japan is about “fan engagement” and bringing them on board. 

“OKX is at the forefront, like we are with Formula 1, trying to innovate and be forward-thinking. It’s cool, I think this it’s the first time this has been done with a livery takeover,” he said

Cointelegraph’s Gareth Jenkinson alongside F1 driver Daniel Ricciardo and OKX CMO Haider Rafique at Token2049 in Singapore.

Rafique highlighted synergies between the cryptocurrency industry and Formula 1, with the “velocity of innovation” from the sport in parallel with the speed at which the blockchain and cryptocurrency ecosystem has continued to develop:

“Ultimately the fun that we are all having comes from being creative together. Just with this livery the two design teams worked really closely together and we’re just so excited we got to work with the McLaren F1 team, with Daniel and now we have this amazing design that we’re excited for the world to see.”

Formula 1 marks its return to the Singapore street circuit for the first time since 2019. The build-up to the race has coincided with the Token2049 conference, with the street circuit slowly being pieced together until full road closures took effect on Sept. 29. 

Before Covid-19, Ricciardo had enjoyed success at the track and hopes to emulate his previous podium finishes in the city:

“It’s good to be back, 2019 was the last time and I’ve always loved street circuits and before it’s all up you’re on the track trying to figure it all out because it does look different when it’s not all put together. I’m really happy to be back, I’ve had some podiums here in the past so let’s just say I am coming in hot.”

Formula 1 continues to attract marketing and advertising deals with the biggest firms in the world of cryptocurrencies. OKX was the latest cryptocurrency exchange and trading platform to pen a deal with a major team, signing up as the primary partner of McLaren in May 2022.

F1’s Daniel Ricciardo cruises into crypto at Token2049

Formula 1 driver Daniel Ricciardo cruises into crypto as OKX performs a first-ever livery takeover of McLaren’s racing cars ahead of the Singapore and Japan Grand Prix.

McLaren’s Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo sat down with Cointelegraph during the Token2049 conference in Singapore, discussing his recent involvement in crypto ahead of the 2022 Singapore Grand Prix.

Alongside OKX chief marketing officer Haider Rafique, the duo delved into the partnership between McLaren Racing and the crypto exchange, exploring a variety of entertaining marketing moves between the two brands.

Ricciardo featured in a new OKX advert launched earlier this year standing alongside the McLaren MCL36 F1 racing car while his “spirit animal” honey badger sat in the cockpit of the vehicle. The tongue-in-cheek advert highlights the relatively unknown status of the cryptocurrency world, which continues to seek avenues to drive wider adoption of the space.

As the first point of order, Ricciardo admitted that he’d first explored the world of cryptocurrencies in 2021 and told Cointelegraph that friends had first piqued his curiosity.

“Last year, I got involved. I got my OKX wallet and everything. It was really through a lot of curiosity as well. A lot of my friends were into it, and then through the relationship with the team, […] I got on board. I’m learning every day,” he explained. 

Formula 1 drivers are known for their propensity to push the boundaries in various aspects of their life and Ricciardo joked that his foray into crypto accelerated fairly quickly. The 33-year-old said he was trying to increase his knowledge of the space and saw the value of diversification that cryptocurrency markets offer:

“I was actually starting to get pretty involved to a point where a few people on my team were like, ‘Alright, you’re spending a bit too much time on here.’ It’s great, and I am certainly curious in terms of diversification and trying to understand more about the space.”

OKX, meanwhile, has explored creative marketing efforts through the multi-year partnership with McLaren, announcing a livery takeover for the next two stops on the F1 calendar. Bold, orange OKX branding is front and center for the Singapore and Japan Grand Prix races and Ricciardo believes the efforts will draw more fans into the world of cryptocurrencies.

Ricciardo said the new livery in Singapore and Japan is about “fan engagement” and bringing them on board. 

“OKX is at the forefront, like we are with Formula 1, trying to innovate and be forward-thinking. It’s cool. This is the first time this has been done, as well, with a livery takeover,” he said

Cointelegraph’s Gareth Jenkinson alongside F1 driver Daniel Ricciardo and OKX CMO Haider Rafique at Token2049 in Singapore.

Rafique highlighted synergies between the cryptocurrency industry and Formula 1, with the “velocity of innovation” from the sport in parallel with the speed at which the blockchain and cryptocurrency ecosystem has continued to develop:

“Ultimately, the fun that we are all having comes from being creative together. Just with this livery, the two design teams worked really closely together, and we’re just so excited we got to work with the McLaren F1 team, with Daniel, and now we have this amazing design that we’re excited for the world to see.”

Formula 1 marks its return to the Singapore street circuit for the first time since 2019. The build-up to the race has coincided with the Token2049 conference, with the street circuit slowly pieced together until full road closures took effect on Sept. 29. 

Before COVID-19, Ricciardo had enjoyed success at the track and hopes to emulate his previous podium finishes in the city:

“It’s good to be back. 2019 was the last time, and I’ve always loved street circuits. And before, it’s all up, you’re on the track trying to figure it all out because it does look different when it’s not all put together. I’m really happy to be back. I’ve had some podiums here in the past, so let’s just say I am coming in hot.”

Formula 1 continues to attract marketing and advertising deals with the biggest firms in the world of cryptocurrencies. OKX was the latest cryptocurrency exchange and trading platform to pen a deal with a major team, signing up as the primary partner of McLaren in May 2022.

Uncertainty around French laws prompted F1 racers to remove crypto branding: Report

Spectators could not see Crypto.com’s logos during Formula One’s French Grand Prix, while staff from Alfa Romeo, AlphaTauri and Alpine reportedly removed crypto-related branding.

Many Formula 1 international racing teams reportedly removed or covered branding and logos from crypto-related sponsors in response to uncertainty around France’s advertising regulations.

According to a Tuesday report from RacingNews365, Crypto.com’s logos were not on display during the French Grand Prix on Sunday — the crypto exchange has been a global partner with the racing series starting in July 2021. The team behind the Alpine Formula 1 car also reportedly removed branding representing crypto exchange Binance from its cars, drivers’ clothing and letterhead.

“Knowing about the regulations here in France as for cryptocurrency, after discussions with our partner, it was decided to avoid any advertising on French soil,” said a spokesperson for Italian F1 team AlphaTauri, which partnered with blockchain platform Fantom Foundation in January.

Luxury car manufacturer Alfa Romeo, which participated in the French Grand Prix, reportedly removed branding related to crypto lender Vauld and meme cryptocurrency Floki Inu (FOLKI), citing possible legal concerns:

“The team is complying with all French regulations with regard to crypto partner advertising on the car. We have been advised that, in order to display a cryptocurrency partner logo in France, the cryptocurrency brand must be registered at the AMF, which is not the case of two of our cryptocurrency partners.”

The AMF, or the Autorité des Marchés Financiers, announced on July 21 that it would be working with France’s Professional Advertising Regulatory Authority to amend its existing regulatory framework to include crypto-related advertisements. The regulator called for recommendations on token offering ads, adding that digital asset service providers should include information about the possible risks of crypto investments.

Due to the seeming vagueness of the AMF’s statement, many of the F1 teams still showed signs of their crypto sponsors at the event. Red Bull Racing, which was sponsored by Tezos and also received a $150-million sponsorship from Singapore-based crypto trading platform Bybit in February, reportedly had both firms’ logos on its car at the French Grand Prix, saying its legal team had discussed the matter.

Related: Crypto ‘en français’: Cointelegraph France is now live

McLaren Racing, partnered with crypto exchange OKX, took similar actions. Mercedes, sponsored by crypto exchange FTX, and Ferrari, by blockchain firm Velas, reportedly moved forward with showing branding and logos as well. A Ferrari spokesperson hinted that the AMF’s regulatory purview may not apply to Velas:

“Velas Network AG informed us it does not provide services that would require registration […] therefore there is no advertisement prohibition with respect to the use of the Velas logo on the Scuderia Ferrari assets within the scope of the French GP.”

Many global regulators have scrutinized ads for crypto products and services as the space grows. In January, Spain’s financial regulator announced it would be requiring ads to be “clear, balanced and fair,” while providing information on the risks around crypto investments. The United Kingdom’s Advertising Standards Authority also banned certain ads from firms including Coinbase, Kraken and Crypto.com for allegedly “failing to illustrate the risk of the investment.”