EXCLUSIVE: Binance To Give Away NFTs During Super Bowl LVI In Bid To Discourage Celebrity-Influence Over Crypto Adoption

What Happened: Binance on Monday morning announced plans to give out Proof of Attendance Protocol (POAP) non-fungible tokens during Super Bowl LVI. The cryptocurrency exchange said it has partnered with celebrities like J Balvin, Jimmy Butler and Valentina Shevchenko. 

Binance CCO Patrick Hillmann explained why Binance is using POAP NFTs for its campaign, "The beauty of POAP NFTs is that they celebrate a specific moment in time. Our campaign is encouraging fans to sound the alarm at CryptoCelebAlert.com during the game. We wanted to commemorate that moment with a POAP as a reminder to fans to trust themselves when it comes to crypto."

The campaign tells consumers, “Don’t listen to celebrities about your financial freedom, learn crypto and trust yourself.” 

Changpeng Zhao, founder and CEO of Binance, better known as ‘CZ,’ said the campaign was about "helping people be more confident in themselves as it’s better to be your own expert than listen to someone who may not actually understand or care about your financial goals.”

Why It Matters: While many anticipate cryptocurrency companies and NFTs to advertise during Super Bowl LVI, Binance is calling on consumers to learn more about cryptocurrency and trust themselves, rather than trusting celebrities.

This comes at a time when A-list celebrities, such as Kim Kardashian and Floyd Mayweather, are being sued for promoting a knock-off of Ethereum ETH/USD, ‘Ethereum Max.’ Binance is the world’s largest cryptocurrency and blockchain infrastructure provider with over 25 million users worldwide.

What Else To Know: If a celebrity is featured in a cryptocurrency-related commercial during Super Bowl LVI , viewers can go to CryptoCelebAlert.com to claim 1 of 2,222 POAP NFTs, which feature Jimmy Butler. The website CryptoCelebAlert.com lets users access educational content on blockchain technology.

Balvin, a Colombian singer and rapper, said he has been experimenting with cryptocurrencies because he believes "it offers new ways to think about financial freedom."
"Not just for artists, entertainers and athletes but for anyone who is interested and willing to learn,” said Balvin. “One lesson in my career is don’t trust what ‘they’ tell you, do your own research and then decide.”