Mercedes suspend F1 deal with troubled crypto sponsor

Mercedes have suspended their F1 sponsorship deal with crisis-hit cryptocurrency exchange FTX and has removed the company’s logos from the team’s cars.

Lewis Larkam

11 Nov 2022

Lewis Hamilton (GBR) Mercedes AMG F1 W13.

FTX, one of the world’s biggest crypto exchanges, is commencing bankruptcy proceedings in the United States, while the company’s chief executive officer, Sam Bankman-Fried, has resigned.

With the firm seeking around $9bn to save itself from insolvency after a rescue bid from rival exchange Binance collapsed earlier this week, FTX users have been scrambling to withdraw their investments.

Amid the continued downfall for one of the most powerful players in crypto, Mercedes have pulled their partnership with the US-firm on the eve of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

“As a first step, we have suspended our partnership agreement with FTX,” a Mercedes spokesperson said on Friday.

“This means the company will no longer appear on our race car and other branded assets from this weekend. We will continue to monitor closely the situation as it evolves.”

Mercedes signed the sponsorship deal with FTX in September last year amid a recent influx of crypto sponsors in F1.

Red Bull signed a record $150m sponsorship deal with Bybit earlier this year, while Ferrari, Alpine, McLaren, Aston Martin, AlphaTauri and Alfa Romeo also have crypto partners.