Libereum, a Dutch cryptocurrency company, announced on Wednesday that it has acquired the Spanish football club Elche CF. This brings the company one step closer to its goal of making its token (Liber) the only method of payment in the football stadium of clubs it owns.
Under the agreement, Libereum has given a bank guarantee of €4.3 million ($4.9 million) as a first downpayment. According to Dutch sports publication Voetbal International, the company also intended to purchase Roda JC Kerkrade of the Netherlands. However, that deal has reportedly fallen through.
Before publishing the news yesterday, on its website, the company teased that it had reached an agreement to acquire a football club worth €80 million.
Libereum is an Ethereum -based cryptocurrency. Previously, the company claimed that it “will become one of the top 10 Cryptocurrencies within the first twelve months after we have gained ownership of the first club.”
Elche CF is a Spanish football club from Elche, the third largest city in the Valencia region in Spain. Founded in 1923, the club was relegated from the country’s first division (Primera División) as a punishment for unpaid tax debts, and the year after that was relegated again. It now plays in the Segunda División A.
Libereum to bring Elche CF back to the primary division
According to the statement released on Wednesday, Libereum believes that it can bring Elche CF back into the Primera Division over the next 2-3 seasons. This will be achieved by providing the club with the necessary financial resources, the statement added.
Cem Kumlar
Source: LinkedIn
Commenting on the acquisition, Cem Kumlar, the founder of Libereum said: "The purchase of Elche CF, a beautiful football club that shares our vision of a cryptocurrency future and is willing to actively communicate it to its supporters, is fantastic news..."
“The purpose of this takeover is twofold: on the one hand, we want to bring the club back to the Primera Divison. This requires financial injections. And that is where our digital coin comes in. We want the coin (token) to gradually become part of the financial policy in and around the club, so that everything in due course can be paid simply, in an easily accessible way, with Liber.”
