In brief
- WhiteBIT’s token (WBT) surged to a new all-time high following news of its Juventus sponsorship.
- The exchange will act as the official sleeve sponsor and crypto exchange of Juventus during the three-year deal.
- Juventus already has crypto connections, including stablecoin giant Tether as a minority investor.
The token of European crypto exchange WhiteBIT reached a new all-time high price on Monday, surging more than 30% following news that the exchange has sponsored prominent Italian soccer club Juventus in a three-year deal.
The WhiteBIT token (WBT) is now trading at $51.64 with a $7.45 billion market cap, moving it inside the top 25 crypto assets by market capitalization according to data from CoinGecko.
WBT peaked at a new all-time high price of $52.27 overnight, beating the previous high of just over $40—set a day earlier.
“We are thrilled to welcome WhiteBIT to the Juventus family, a partner that shares our commitment to innovation and excellence, both on and off the pitch.” said Juventus CEO Maurizio Scanavino, in a statement. He added that the collab will bring fans “new engagement opportunities, leveraging cutting-edge technology to enhance their connection with Juventus.”
As part of the deal, the WhiteBIT logo will be present on the sleeves of the Juventus men’s first team jersey starting at the FIFA Club World Cup. Additionally, WhiteBIT is now the official cryptocurrency exchange of Juventus, and the pair will collaborate on exclusive digital content and more.
WhiteBIT also acts as the official cryptocurrency exchange for FC Barcelona, a soccer team in Spain’s prominent soccer league, La Liga.
“This partnership marks a major milestone in our mission to make cryptocurrency more accessible to an increasingly wider audience,” said WhiteBIT Founder and CEO Volodymyr Nosov, in a statement. “Together, we’ll create new, tech-driven ways to connect fans with their favorite team.”
The move is Juventus’ second major connection to crypto this year, having previously been the subject of headlines when stablecoin firm Tether announced a minority stake in the club. It also has a fan token (JUV) on the Chiliz blockchain.
Beyond Juventus, soccer has become increasingly interconnected with crypto this year. In May FIFA announced the launch of its own Avalanche L1 blockchain, creating new opportunities in the space and migrating its collectibles platform in the process. And blockchain game FIFA Rivals was just released on iOS and Android last week.
Furthermore, French-based club Paris Saint-Germain recently announced that it is maintaining a portion of its balance sheet in Bitcoin.
Edited by Andrew Hayward
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