TSM covers FTX logo following sponsor’s bankrupcy, claims to be financially stable

It’s been a rough week for the crypto industry and especially for crypto exchange FTX which has filed for bankruptcy following an announcement about the acquisition by its rival Binance. In the meantime, the FTX logos on the jerseys of TSM players, who attended the FNCS Invitational 2022 this weekend, have been covered by black tape. 

TSM Fortnite players Shane “EpikWhale” Cotton and Nathan “Reet” Amundson were spotted wearing their TSM jerseys at this year’s Fortnite Champion Series Invitational, however, the FTX logo was covered with a tape during interviews.

FTX goes bankrupt

In June last year, TSM signed a 10-year, $210 million naming deal with one of the biggest crypto exchanges FTX. Consequently, the North American organization changed its name to TSM FTX on all main social platforms. However, displaying of the team’s full name has been suspended from broadcasts for League and VALORANT due to Riot Games’ rules regarding crypto sponsorships.

By the end of last week, FTX caused turmoil in the crypto industry, as the company had to file for bankruptcy following a spate of withdrawal requests amid a looming crypto crisis. One of FTX’s main competitors, Binance, announced its intention to take over the company, but that didn’t happen as FTX was under scrutiny and Binance decided to stay out of it. Some reports indicated that FTX had mishandled customer funds and that the US authorities are already investigating the company. Apparently, Binance decided it wasn’t worth the hassle and expense. In order to intercept such crises in the future, an industry recovery fund is to be formed to support crypto companies.

Why did TSM cover up their sponsor?

Of course, many people have been wondering whether covering the logos on players’ jerseys is a result of FTX’s bankruptcy, while some believe that it might have something to do with Epic Games’ own cryptocurrency sponsorship rules. Moreover, it’s unclear whether this decision was made by players, the organization, or Epic Games. However, one thing is for sure: the pasted-over logos are no coincidence.

 

What’s TSM’s stance?

Yesterday, TSM finally posted an official statement regarding the situation on Twitter, saying that the organization has no insight into what is happening apart from what has been publicly reported and that it’s following the situation closely.

The statement also read that TSM is financially stable and profitable, implying that the situation regarding the FTX sponsorship shouldn’t significantly impact the existence of the organization in the foreseeable future.

What does it mean for TSM, LCS and FURIA?

In addition to TSM, FTX had partnerships with other esports companies, such as the LCS, but also the news publisher Nerd Street Gamers, and the Brazilian esports organization FURIA. At the moment we don’t know what effects the bankruptcy of FTX will have on the existing cooperations. Miami Heat and FURIA announced this morning that they have ended their partnerships with FTX. 

Header: TSM