Ferrari announced Thursday it has terminated its partnership with Velas, the Zug-based blockchain company that joined the Scuderia's sponsor roster in 2022. No financial terms, exit penalties, or reasons were disclosed. The deal was structured to run through the 2024 season.
Velas appeared on Ferrari sidepods and team assets starting in Bahrain two years ago, part of a wave of crypto and Web3 entrants into Formula One sponsorship. The Swiss firm, which operates a proof-of-stake blockchain protocol, paid an estimated $8 million annually for brand placement across Ferrari's digital channels and select livery real estate. That figure placed it in the mid-tier of the team's commercial stack, below title partner Mission Winnow's successor deals but above regional logistics partners.
The termination follows a pattern. Crypto Winter erased $2 trillion in token market capitalization between November 2021 and November 2022, forcing a dozen Formula One sponsors to renegotiate or exit. McLaren's Bitci deal ended quietly in early 2023. Red Bull Racing restructured its Bybit arrangement into a performance-contingent model. Ferrari's decision suggests the team is pruning partnerships where activation fell short or payment terms required renegotiation. Worth noting: Velas tokens traded at $0.014 Thursday, down 97% from their April 2022 high.
What matters here is sponsorship inventory discipline. Ferrari enters 2025 with 14 commercial partners, down from a peak of 19 in 2022. The Velas exit opens roughly 120 square inches of sidepod and rear-wing real estate, premium assets as the team chases its first constructors' title since 2008. Sponsor renewal windows for Santander, Shell, and Ray-Ban all fall in Q2 2025. The timing allows Ferrari to approach those negotiations with a clean canvas and leverage from Lewis Hamilton's arrival.
Team principals historically avoid mid-cycle terminations unless payment defaults or reputational risk surface. Ferrari's statement offered neither, which points to a mutual dissolution tied to underperformance clauses or a lump-sum buyout. The team has not replaced a terminated sponsor within the same fiscal year since 2019, when Philip Morris rebranded Mission Winnow amid regulatory pressure.
Watch for Ferrari's Q1 2025 commercial partner announcement, typically timed to pre-season testing in Bahrain. The vacant sidepod space will likely host either a luxury goods partner or a logistics provider aligned with the team's sustainability messaging. Santander's €25 million annual deal renews in May; if that extends, Ferrari will have rotated 60% of its sponsor portfolio since Fred Vasseur took team principal duties in January 2023.
Velas has not issued a statement. Its sponsorship portfolio now consists of one remaining motorsport asset: a $1.2 million deal with a Formula E charging infrastructure supplier, expiring in June.