From Matt Damon to the NBA: How Crypto.com Dominated Media in 2021

What is Crypto.com?

Crypto.com is a cryptocurrency exchange and “The world’s fastest growing crypto app.” They also claim to be the ‘fastest…and most secure’ exchange on the market, with over 10 million users and a listing of more than 200 cryptocurrencies available for purchase. You can use 20+ fiat currencies to make your purchases on the platform too.

Crypto.com also offers perks like staking rewards for those looking to put their investment to work, and their very own Crypto.com Visa Card that tops out at 8% return on all purchases.

Crypto.com has taken the cryptocurrency world by storm and they appear to be just about everywhere. They launched an impressive product trailer starring Matt Damon that has almost 10M views, their core token has seen an exponential rise in 2021, they recently launched their own NFT marketplace, and they have their own DeFi wallet.

In essence, Crypto.com is trying to become a neo-bank suite of services that covers every fundamental element of DeFi.

Crypto.com’s Core Token (CRO)

At the time of writing Crypto.com’s core token, CRO, currently sits #15 by total market cap. It’s immediately below Polygon’s core token (MATIC) and Binance USD (BUSD).

Since Crypto.com’s key partnerships and announcements in 2021, we’ve seen a huge rise in it’s value, going as high as $0.8482 USD.

We’ve seen this time and again in the crypto space; a project makes promising developments, onboards new users, builds key strategic partnerships and their core token responds accordingly.

One reason for CRO’s explosive growth is it’s 2021 media deals and platform developments.

Crypto.com is Everywhere: A Look at Crypto.com’s Media Deals

With the launch of the Matt Damon campaign came the official public tag-line of Crypto.com “Fortune Favours the Brave.” We’re quickly seeing billboards and engaging digital media appearing in several major cities.

In a recent press release, Crypto.com said, “Our #FFTB global campaign continues with a series of outdoor billboards launched in 20+ markets. Some of these billboards are already on display in cities like Los Angeles, Singapore,  Copenhagen, Rio De Janeiro, and Tel Aviv, with more to be shown in the coming months.”

The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)

Official Kit Sponsor of the UFC

Crypto.com purchased branding rights to fighters’ uniforms in 2021 for a reported 9-figure sum (USD), making Crypto.com the UFC’s official “kit partner”. It’s one of the most lucrative sponsorship deals of all-time and all UFC fighters will have the Crypto.com logo on their walkout and fight gear. It’s hard to underestimate what a brand deal like this does for general adoption of cryptocurrency.

Exclusive Partner of the First Official UFC NFTs

This, we now know, was just the beginning of Crypto.com’s relationship with the UFC. As the NFT marketplace evolves and expands, Crypto.com and the UFC are teaming up to release their own exclusive collectibles line.

The UFC reports that it will “offer a wide variety of UFC digital collectibles that will include unique fighter collections, fight night artwork, event posters, championship belts, avatars, artist collaborations, mystery boxes, athlete profiles, and more.”

The National Basketball Association (NBA)

An Iconic Naming Rights Deal

Crypto.com landed a major NBA naming rights deal for the famous Staples Center in Los Angeles. Not only do you see “Crypto.com” across the chest of every major MMA fighter, you will now see it from the skies of Los Angeles for the next 20 years.

Reports came out soon after that this was the largest naming rights deal in sports history (and only one of Crypto.com’s many deals of the year), valued at over US$700 million.

The Philadelphia 76ers

Every NBA jersey has a sponsor jersey patch that represents the ‘presenting’ sponsor of the team’s kit. In 2021, Crypto.com inked a six-year deal with the Philadelphia 76ers to become the official sponsor of the jersey patch. Crypto.com seems to be a fan of ‘firsts’, but this will be the second crypto-related jersey patch in the NBA. The first was a 2021 deal between StormX and the Portland Trailblazers.

Formula 1

Advertising Partner

Not to be out done by the Portland Trailblazers deal, Crypto.com moved on to another sport, Formula 1.

In July of this year, Crypto.com landed yet another 9-figure deal when they became the inaugural global partner of the F1 Sprint Series. Crypto.com has received top-tier advertising positions in some of the major Grand Prix events of the F1 season, making the crypto industry highly visible. According to Business Insider, this is a 5-year deal that also wins Crypto.com ‘trackside slots’ at major F1 events. In an official statement by Formula 1, they said that, “Formula One has been bullish on the future of cryptocurrencies…”

Aston Martin Cognizant Formula One Team

This wasn’t the first major F1 deal with Crypto.com, although it may be the most visible. One of the major F1 racing teams, Aston Martin Cognizant, signed an exclusive deal with the exchange that gives Crypto.com advertising rights on the racing vehicles themselves.

European Football

Series A

The professional Italian European football league, Serie A, became the first major European football league to sign an exclusive deal with a cryptocurrency company. It’s highly anticipated annual championship, the Coppa Italia, will now include exclusive NFTs like trophies and match highlights.

Ligue 1

France’s premiere football club, Paris Saint-Germain, has always been true to their innovative roots. This season they added some monumental European football names to their roster, and they also became the first Ligue 1 team to sign an exclusive cryptocurrency exchange partnership with, you guessed it, Crypto.com.

There are some interesting elements to this deal, including an exclusive NFT line and payment of a percentage of the sponsorship deal in their core token (CRO).

The National Hockey League (NHL)

Montreal Canadiens

Iconic sports venues seem to be the taste of the year for Crypto.com. They’ve renamed the Staples Center and they will now appear at center ice in one of the most iconic hockey venues in the world, the Bell Center in Montreal.

The Montreal Canadiens have won the ultimate hockey trophy, the Stanley Cup 24 times, and are one of the most iconic names in the sport.

Where Does Crypto.com Go From Here?

It’s been a year of incredible growth for Crypto.com (both in terms of the business and the value of the CRO token) but it’s hard to say exactly what the company will attempt in 2022.

The company has shown no signs of slowing when it comes to the advertising budget but there has to be a point of diminishing returns (one would think) as the Crypto.com brand is rapidly gaining mainstream saturation.

It seems clear that Crypto.com is trying to compete with the Binances and Coinbases of the world to become one of the biggest (if not biggest) crypto exchange in the world. Of course plenty of other companies have attempted the same thing and ultimately fallen short.

Here’s road map to some of the milestones the company might hit over the next few years:

• Launch the full exchange in the United States (The USA is currently limited to app only)
• Surpass 15 million users by end of 2021 (Crypto.com is currently at 5 million users)
• Achieve $1 per CRO token (CRO started the year at $.05 and peaked at $.89 in November)
• More integration with traditional finance platforms