Kieran Gibbs is converting his pay into Bitcoin

Athlete Kieran Gibbs commits to converting half of his salary into bitcoin through the world leader in cryptofinance.

XBTO, a global, institutional cryptofinance market maker and asset manager, announced a partnership with Inter Miami CF star Kieran Gibbs as the official facilitator converting 50 percent of Gibbs’ annual salary into bitcoin while strategically leveraging XBTO to avoid conversion fees typically charged on alternate platforms.

As a world leader in cryptofinance, XBTO is equipped with the expertise and resources to effectively collaborate with Gibbs. Beginning in December 2021, half of Gibbs’ salary will be transferred to XBTO, where XBTO will convert his USD into bitcoin — without charging any conversion fees — and send the bitcoin directly to Gibbs’ hard custodial wallet. XBTO’s trading desk has extensive experience structuring and executing complex trades, with deep access to global liquidity. These capabilities are leveraged to obtain the best price even for relatively straightforward transactions. In addition, XBTO has an ESG compliant mining operation utilizing hydroelectric power which gives direct access to freshly mined coins.

This progressive deal establishes Gibbs as the first US-Based Major League Soccer player, and first Inter Miami player, to publicly announce the transfer of a portion of his salary into crypto.

“I’ve been a fan of bitcoin and the crypto space for some time now, and I believe they have the ability to break down huge social and economic barriers — crypto is for everyone,” said Gibbs. “I hope my partnership with XBTO can further the awareness and education of cryptocurrencies and their tremendous potential to positively impact global societies.”

Earlier this year, XBTO established itself as the first cryptofinance firm to partner with an MLS team, where it signed the largest sponsorship deal in league history with Inter Miami. This continues XBTO’s history of innovation in the cryptofinance space, being one of the first companies to provide institutional-grade liquidity to the world’s largest crypto exchanges and institutions. Furthermore, in 2019 XBTO and cryptofinance fund Galaxy Digital carried out the first-ever block trade of a bitcoin futures contract on Bakkt, the bitcoin futures platform launched by NYSE parent InterContinental Exchange. These contracts were subsequently physically settled which was the first instance of physical delivery of a digital asset under existing U.S. commodity futures laws and regulations.

“Some struggle to see that crypto is a new asset class that is here to stay and that it can unlock remarkable opportunities, so we’re pleased to work with Kieran who is bringing attention to the incredible utility of crypto assets,” said Philippe Bekhazi, CEO of XBTO. “As someone with a massive platform of trusted fans and followers, we’re excited to help Kieran show the soccer community that engaging with bitcoin is a legitimate, and often superior, way of receiving value.”