Kieran Maguire: Man City ‘won’t be happy’ after new sponsor flouts UK law – ‘extremely high-risk’
Man City “won’t be happy” with their new partner OKX for offering a product that is banned in the United Kingdom.
That is the view of finance guru Kieran Maguire, speaking exclusively to Football Insider about City’s global deal with the cryptocurrency firm.
City announced the link-up with Seychelles-based company OKX last Friday (4 March).
Per The Athletic on Tuesday (8 March), OKX promoted crypto derivatives, which are banned in the UK, to consumers as part of the announcement.
The news comes just four months after City’s last crypto partnership with 3Key was terminated because of concerns over the company’s legitimacy.
Maguire claimed that the reigning Premier League champions will be extremely cautious with how they now proceed in the crypto industry.
“It’s a double-edged sword,” he told Football Insider‘s Adam Williams.
“The reputation of the industry and some of the products are a cause for concern because it’s an unregulated market.
“Then you add derivatives into the mix. For people unfamiliar, a derivative is when you pay a small amount for the option to do something at a later date.
“That can leave you very financially exposed. It can be an option, a swap or effectively a gamble about what the market price of a product is going to be.
“It is extremely high-risk and should be treated with utmost caution.
“I think Man City will say that they are not responsible for the individual products.
“You can’t be responsible for your business partner’s activities but you can say whether or not you want to be associated with them.
“We are seeing a lot more scrutiny on football clubs and their partners. They will proceed with caution and won’t be particularly happy with OKX.”
OKX have since pulled the segment of the ad that referenced crypto derivatives.
They claim they do not offer the product to UK customers.
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