Bitbuy Shifts Super Bowl Ad Focus From ‘Missed Opportunities’ to ‘Trust’

Canadian crypto exchange Bitbuy’s upcoming Super Bowl ad has a different vibe than the company’s 2022 spot after an eventful year shook the industry.  

Bitbuy is expected to be among the only crypto firms set to advertise around the NFL championship game on Feb. 12 as companies in the space cut budgets and look to regroup as the crypto winter continues.

Of last year’s crypto advertisers, FTX went bankrupt and online brokerage eToro told Blockworks it won’t be running an ad. Coinbase last month implemented cost-saving measures and exchange OKX, which planned to buy an ad, has changed its mind.

The Bitbuy ad, which went live online Thursday, will be the firm’s second consecutive Super Bowl showing. NBA star Kyle Lowry appeared in the company’s ad last year featured during the game’s Canadian broadcast. 

Bitbuy’s upcoming 60-second commercial, also to appear only in Canada, is set to run within an hour before the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles kick off. 

Crypto markets plummeted amid the collapse of Terra’s algorithmic stablecoin in May and the subsequent bankruptcies of companies such as Three Arrows Capital. The industry was once again rattled as FTX crashed in November, shaking confidence in centralized exchanges and similar entities. 

“Whereas the theme for Bitbuy’s 2022 commercial was missed opportunities, 2023’s theme is trust,” Binu Koshy, Bitbuy’s branding and communications director, told Blockworks. 

“We wanted to remind people in a sort of outlandish way that by being locally based and fully regulated, Bitbuy provides investing services with a personal touch.” 

The new Bitbuy spot features Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes, who Bitbuy marketed as a brand ambassador Tuesday.

Exchanges typically send a confirmation email to a user who makes a digital transaction. In the upcoming Super Bowl commercial, Barnes gives a Bitbuy user a confirmation hug. 

Koshy declined to comment on how much Bitbuy spent on the commercial. The executive previously told Blockworks that roughly 25% of the company’s 2022 marketing budget went to signing Lowry, as well as producing and buying last year’s Super Bowl ad.

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