Portland Trail Blazers ink NBA jersey sponsorship deal with Seattle crypto startup StormX

The StormX jersey patch. (Courtesy photo by Bruce Ely / Trail Blazers)

Seattle-based cryptocurrency startup StormX is making a big marketing presence in the corner of an NBA jersey.

StormX has just signed a deal with the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers that will wear the company’s logo on team jerseys for the next five years, starting with the 2021-22 season.

The NBA launched its Jersey Patch Sponsorship program in 2017, which allows teams to generate revenue from companies that pay to have their logo embroidered on the front left shoulder of jerseys.

In 2017, Jersey patch deals averaged $ 9.3 million annually. The Trail Blazers previously had a jersey deal with Performance Health and its Biofreeze brand.

StormX did not disclose specific financial data, but said it has signed an eight-digit contract that includes in-arena branding and the rights to be the “Portland Trail Blazers Exclusive Blockchain Affiliate”. It also has the rights to sell and carry out team-identified marketing internationally.

StormX CEO Simon Yu. (StormX photo)

Founded in 2015, StormX operates a platform that allows users to earn cryptocurrency rewards when they shop at any of 750+ stores. It also has its own token called STMX with a market value of $ 209 million.

StormX makes money on transaction fees when their users shop from their partner brands.

StormX’s app has more than 3 million downloads and has paid out more than $ 4 million in rewards to date. It is one of many crypto and blockchain-related startups that is attracting the attention of investors.

StormX is the first crypto company to be an NBA jersey sponsor and the first crypto brand to partner with the Trail Blazers, underscoring the technology’s growing adoption and popularity over the past few years.

“We’re thrilled to have such a groundbreaking, revolutionary company on the front of our jerseys,” said Trail Blazers President and CEO said Chris McGowan in a statement.

To “commemorate the partnership”, the Blazers will be releasing their first NFT based on their Gameday poster series later this month. The NBA has ridden the NFT craze with their popular NBA Top Shot platform.

The Miami Heat, another NBA team, signed a $ 135 million naming rights deal with crypto exchange FTX earlier this year, renaming their arena the FTX Arena.

In April, StormX raised $ 6 million to fuel growth; Investors include Plug and Play Ventures, an early supporter of PayPal, and the reward app Honey, which PayPal acquired for $ 4 billion. Side note: PayPal is the shirt sponsor of the Phoenix Suns.

Total funding for StormX to date is $ 38.7 million. The 21-member company plans to launch a debit card later this year and is working with a top payment provider to offer cardholders more rewards.

StormX is led by Simon Yu, a University of Washington graduate and former KeyBank analyst who also founded Bomba Fusion, a Korean fusion food truck and catering company in Seattle. Yu is also a native of Portland, Oregon and a huge NBA fan who grew up with the support of the Trail Blazers.

Yu founded StormX as CakeCodes, which graduated from Techstars Seattle in 2016. He founded StormX with Calvin Hsieh.

Fresh, groundbreaking, revolutionary.

We are excited to announce that we are teaming up with @stormxio, the first cryptocurrency patch partner in the NBA! https://t.co/hAHDdMABDA pic.twitter.com/ZWpmp9k2wr

– Portland Trail Blazers (@trailblazers) July 1, 2021