Cryptocurrency-based fan platform linked to F1 and FE teams goes into liquidation

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In the round-up: Cryptocurrency-based fan app Iqoniq, which had partnered with three Formula 1 and four Formula E teams, has gone into liquidation according to a report.

In brief

Iqoniq liquidation hits fans

Blockchain-based fan engagement platform Iqoniq, which had partnered with teams in Formula 1, Formule E and other sports, has gone into liquidation according to The Times.

F1 teams McLaren, Williams and Alfa Romeo carried Iqoniq branding after announcing deals with the platform during 2020. Iqoniq also partnered with Envision, Techeetah, Dragon Penske and Mahindra in Formula E.

Iqoniq sold collectible tokens to fans promising “access to a wide range of exciting opportunities which bring them one step close than anyone else to their idols and organisations in sports and entertainment.” The company’s dissolution will raise concerns fans may not be able to recover the value of any tokens they purchased.

Williams also carried Iqoniq branding during 2020
At the time of publication the company’s website remains live but links to its token sale platform are no longer working.

Iqoniq also partnered with several football teams from major European leagues. The Football Supporters’ Association has called for cryptocurrency-related platforms to face tougher regulation.

Raikkonen’s motocross team gets Kawasaki factory backing

Kimi Raikkonen has wasted little time in redeploying his efforts after calling time on his record-breaking Formula 1 career. The 2007 world champion’s motocross team, which he set up in 2011, has won factory support from manufacturer Kawasaki for the upcoming season.

“It’s no secret that, for me, one of my great passions in life for many years has been motocross,” said Raikkonen in a statement released by the Kawasaki Racing Team. “But this team is not what you might call a hobby; it’s very serious, very focused and we aspire to be the best we possibly can.

“Now I have retired from racing I will be able to spend more time on this project; not on the daily issues but more from a strategic point of view using my experience of how teams work and what creates success on the world stage.

“Everyone including myself is delighted that Kawasaki has chosen us to be the Factory team. I know that the chance of success is always greater with direct factory support so this translates into a great opportunity for us as the new Kawasaki Racing Team in MXGP.”

Ferrari runs testing days with 2018 car and Robert Shwartzman

Ferrari has cut its four-day test at Fiorano to three days after abandoning its plan to run last year’s car and switching to a 2018-specification SF71H instead.

The team originally planned to give race drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz Jnr a day each in the car. Instead test driver Robert Shwartzman conducted the first day of running yesterday and will return tomorrow. Sainz will drive in the morning today then hand over to Leclerc.

Shwartzman covered 44 laps – over 131 kilometres – at Fiorano on Wednesday,

Martí promoted to F3 with Campos

Campos has signed Josep María Martí to its FIA Formula 3 team, promoting the 16-year-old from its Spanish F4 team, where he placed third in 2021. Martí is the first of Campos’ 2022 signings in F3, leaving two further spots to confirm in its line up.

TeamDriverDriverDriver
PremaOliver BearmanArthur LeclercJak Crawford
TridentJonny EdgarZane MaloneyTBA
ARTGregoire SaucyJuan Manuel CorreaTBA
HitechIsack HadjarTBATBA
Van AmersfoortTBATBATBA
MPAlexander SmolyarTBATBA
CamposPepe MartiTBATBA
CarlinTBATBATBA
JenzerTBATBATBA
CharouzLaszlo TothTBATBA

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Comment of the day

Formula 1 fans won’t be allowed to attend pre-season testing at the Circuit de Catalunya but some say it wasn’t good value anyway:

It was already a huge rip-off, they charged you €20, no discounts for children or disabled people. Little to no services. Just you and an empty grandstand… So instead of making testing more appealing to those who could attend (I’m one!), they just don’t allow you to attend in the first place. Way to cut corners!

Wonder how many fans will travel to Bahrain for testing…
@Fer-no65

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday to Shelley Lee, Tnfox and David Clifford!

On this day in motorsport

  • 65 years ago today Juan Manuel Fangio won the non-championship Buenos Aires Grand Prix in a Maserati

Author information

Hazel Southwell
Hazel is a motorsport and automotive journalist with a particular interest in hybrid systems, electrification, batteries and new fuel technologies....

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26 comments on “Cryptocurrency-based fan platform linked to F1 and FE teams goes into liquidation”

  1. Like Iqoniq, cryptocurrency seems to me like a great way to lose ALL your money. It’s a scam.

    1. I was about to enter a website which offer you ways to buy crypto, but luckily before I even sent them a nickle they started harassing me on the phone about it. It was a very impolite way to offer their services, and after doing more research, they had a dodgy technique to give you some money at first and then charging fees very soon after so you actually never gained anything. Stay away from crypto. It’s a bubble which will burst soon.

      1. Crypto isn’t some dodgy website though. It’s decentralised, you can technically host your own wallet and avoid any 3rd party services entirely. It will take a lot of time and expertise, but it’s possible.

        I don’t think the concept of decentralised currency is a bubble that can burst. However the structures built upon them, and the blockchain specifically, definitely can.

      2. Just to clarify..when you guys say stay away from crypto or crypto is a scam, you mean ALL crypto? Or just the ones you had bad experience with?

        1. All Crypto is beginning it’s inevitable fall to being worth near $0. It’s not backed by any intrinsic value or government. It is completely at the mercy of government legislation who may at any point may decide that they don’t want a currency that is not taxable and often used for criminal purposes in their economy. The thing I find most telling that Crypto is a scam is that if you say anything about it being a scam your usually met by defensive and angry responses. This is because it’s only worth something if people believe it might be worth something one day (which it won’t be). It’s a fairy, if you don’t believe in it it dies and the Crypto holders who try to continually FOMO pump the market lose their money.

          1. Ransack, I could not agree more with you.

            There are so many Crypto currency scams that have been to do nothing more than rip people off. Even the likes of Bitcoin is used in scams, through their payment requirements (purely as it is non traceable). I also believe it is only a matter of time before countries start to outlaw Cryptocurrencies.

          2. Nice 2014 pov lmao

          3. @RatSack

            It’s not backed by any intrinsic value

            Just like regular money.

            or government

            Which only matters if you trust the government to limit the money supply or trust them in general, but at least one central banker has argued that the ECB has an extremist money policy. Extremist money policies tend to go boom.

            It is completely at the mercy of government legislation who may at any point may decide that they don’t want a currency that is not taxable and often used for criminal purposes in their economy.

            This ignores that Western nations cannot just randomly ban things and that it is actually taxable, although not with VAT, as it’s not a recognized currency, but in the same way that governments can tax the possession and sale of a painting.

            And crowbars are not banned either, even if they are often used for criminal purposes.

            Finally, it’s almost impossible to police it anyway.

            The thing I find most telling that Crypto is a scam is that if you say anything about it being a scam your usually met by defensive and angry responses.

            You are making yourself immune to criticism here. If someone argues against your claims, that itself proves that you are right, in your eyes. This strategy can be used to defend the most absurd claims, for example, by arguing that gravity is a scam, because anytime you argue against it, you are met with defensive and angry responses.

            Ultimately, you just fundamentally don’t seem to understand what you are talking about.

            This is because it’s only worth something if people believe it might be worth something one day (which it won’t be).

            Fact is that the people who bought certain crypto in the past were completely right that it would have value in the future, so people like you who argued that it wouldn’t have persistent value have already been proven wrong.

            The entire idea that ‘use value’ matters is questionable anyway. The very fact that regular money has successfully been used for ages, despite the coins and bills having no ‘use value’ of themselves suggests not.

          4. Bitcoin has intrinsic value though.
            It provides a service. A service to store data in a decentralised network making your data resistant to censorship and unauthorised mutability.

    2. In essence not a scam as a tech, but used for scams (and laundering money). NFT’s though are especially full-on scam territory, but in general there’s a few people that are exploiting it almost full MLM style and are baiting the right people into spending their money that they’ll never see back.

      I very much recommend the YT video “Line Goes Up – The Problem With NFTs” by channel “Folding Ideas” it’s a long video, but well worth checking out.

    3. Most people don’t know the difference between blockchain technology, cryptocurrency, and cryptocurrency, trading platforms of the latter.
      Not understanding the basics makes an easy victim for fraud and deception.

    4. A technology is just that, a technology.
      What we see here isn’t a failure of the technology, but of a business. failing businesses are dime a dozen, nothing new and nothing scandalous.

      It’s important to differentiate.

  2. I am shocked to discover that a company whose business plan reads “fan engagement platform something something blockchain” has failed. This is a truly unexpected development.

  3. The chances that the sprint races won’t happen because of teams’ disagreement must be smaller than the crypto company sponsoring them withdrawing.

  4. I dunno if I’ve got the exchange rate right but €20 doesn’t sound too bad to be the first to see the new cars in person. I mean, what would you expect, signing opportunities and a drivers parade? They’re there to test and getting to see that would be pretty cool on it’s own. If you think of time spent on track per dollar that’s a lot better than any normal race weekend.

    It’ll never attract the kids and the family like a race weekend would. Real shame to be complaining about it and if that’s what people have been doing then I’m not surprised F1 removes the privilege.

    1. @skipgamer, I couldn’t agree more with you.

    2. someone or something
      27th January 2022, 8:55

      I dunno if I’ve got the exchange rate right but €20 doesn’t sound too bad to be the first to see the new cars in person.

      To put those €20 into perspective, hourly minimum wages in western Europe typically range from €5 to €10. Honestly, for F1 standards, this is dirt cheap.

      In other words, I have absolutely no idea what CotD is complaining about. I’d definitely jump at the opportunity to experience an entire track day for the measly price of 20 Eurobucks, and already have in the past.

    3. I’ve been to pre-season testing a few times, and I loved it.
      It’s an inexpensive way to experience F1 cars, interact with other fans (and sometimes drivers), and have access to all public areas of a circuit.

      1. someone or something
        27th January 2022, 11:36

        The last part is especially underrated, I think. It’s one thing to know a circuit, but walking around it, getting a feeling for the venue, its topography, etc., not being limited to a grandstand or slowed down by the tens of thousands of fans in the bronze areas, I think that’s what makes you really bond with it.

    4. Jack (@jackisthestig)
      27th January 2022, 11:11

      €20 per day entry a rip off? That’s practically nothing to watch F1 in the flesh, it’s £15 to watch spit-and-sawdust club racing at Pembrey. It’s fantastic if you like photography, cars are running all day and especially on weekdays there are relatively so few people there you have the place to yourself.

      Pre pandemic I used to go every other year or so. Flights and a decent hotel in Barcelona are quite cheap at that time of year and trains from the central station to Montmelo run every 20 mins. It’s good, I’d urge anyone to go.

  5. Company trading in unregulated new technology goes down leaving investors potless…I am shocked.

    1. You would think after the big bang from the dotcom bubble many will learn.
      There will always be a few that will make a lot of money from such activities and many more who will keep trying and failing.

  6. I’m sure the final two rankings on the driver countdown won’t cause any controversy at all. As for me, I’ve already expressed my feelings on the matter back when we had the pollnin December, so for the sake of my own sanity I’m think I’m going to try to avoid commenting on them.

    Crypto firm goes bust losing many people lots of money? Feigns shock

    1. (Verstappen) took 55% of the vote, finishing ahead of runner-up Lewis Hamilton (24%)

      Maybe no that clear-cut.

  7. I’m not gonna defend or criticize cryptocurrencies because of these news. I think this is a different matter, it’s just a scam. One that any other enterprise from any other sector could have done.

    It’s typical that a new brand tries to put themselves on F1 in order to gain popularity, sell its product and pay for this sponsorship with the consequent income. It’s an old scam as basic as pyramid schemes, and teams should easily avoid them by doing due diligences.

    That’s why I think it has nothing to do with blockchain, the technology behind cryptos or its speculative use. It’s a scam any other brand could have performed before (.e. Rich Energy, some betting houses 10 years ago, and so forth).

  8. re COTD

    Wow, Europeans can moan! Many fans around the world would love the opportunity to watch an F1 test, and would not moan about the empty grandstand, lack of food stalls etc. Europe has for the last 70 years dominated F1 (how many GP’s did Africa, Middle East, India, China, etc get during the last 70 years?) and now they fear the Middle East will do exactly what they did !

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