Lionel Messi joins cryptocurrency craze, to get part of PSG fee in ‘fan tokens’

PSG said on Thursday the tokens were included in his ‘welcome package’, which media reports have estimated at 25-30 million euros (Rs 217 to 260 crore). The club did not disclose the proportion of tokens in the package, but said the amount was ‘significant’.

Football star Lionel Messi’s signing on fee at Paris St Germain includes some of the French club’s cryptocurrency fan tokens, in the latest big name endorsement of new digital assets. The Argentine, 34, left Spanish side Barcelona and signed a two-year contract with Qatari-owned Paris St Germain (PSG), with an option for a third year, on Tuesday. PSG said on Thursday the tokens were included in his ‘welcome package’, which media reports have estimated at 25-30 million euros (Rs 217 to 260 crore). The club did not disclose the proportion of tokens in the package, but said the amount was ‘significant’. Fan tokens are a type of cryptocurrency that allow holders to vote on mostly minor decisions related to their clubs. Among clubs to launch tokens this year are English Premier League champions Manchester City and Italy’s AC Milan. Messi’s former club Barcelona launched one last year.