The FTX collapse has been all everyone’s talked about over the last month or so, and it appears that many people and businesses that were once tied to the now failed exchange are looking to distance themselves from it and quickly.
The Miami Heat Is Ending Its Relationship with FTX
One of them is the FTX Arena, which hosts home games for the Miami Heat. It’s now looking to end its relationship with the disgraced trading platform and change its name fast. In a statement, the team said:
Miami-Dade County and the Miami Heat are immediately taking action to terminate our business relationships with FTX, and we will be working together to find a new naming rights partner for the arena.
The Miami Heat is famous for having basketball players such as Shaquille O’Neal on its roster at one point. Spokespeople for the Miami Heat have stated that the situation surrounding FTX is “extremely disappointing.”
FTX gained a lot of fame in the industry for its use of traditional television commercials and sponsorships. The company has also formed heavy relationships with sports stars, many of which were featured in their small-screen ads. One such figure was Tom Brady, the legendary quarterback for the New England Patriots. He was seen in a commercial for the firm a few months back that poked fun at the digital currency mining process.
Prominently armed with a flamethrower, Brady fired a hot blaze at a nearby block of ice. Once the ice had melted, a bitcoin was visible to the audience. Brady has also agreed to serve as a brand ambassador in the past to the company.
But was once all money, fun, and games for FTX has quickly turned into embarrassment as the company has collapsed rather suddenly, taking many players’ money with it. The firm first began experiencing issues in mid-November and went to Binance for help, claiming it was experiencing a liquidity crunch. This meant it didn’t have enough funds on hand to stay afloat, and it asked the larger enterprise to engage in a buyout.
From there, it looked like a major acquisition was about to happen, though it never did as Changpeng Zhao, the man behind Binance, eventually backed away from the deal, claiming FTX’s problems were simply too big to manage. From there, the company has fallen into bankruptcy and the head executive of the company, Sam Bankman-Fried, has resigned.
So Much Controversy
It’s a sad and ugly sight as what was considered one of the top crypto exchanges in the industry has now fallen into the same ranks as enterprises like the Celsius Network and Three Arrows Capital.
At this time, FTX-based controversy continues as many are wondering how half a billion in crypto funds could have gone missing from the exchange.
