American multinational financial services corporation Visa and esports platform FACEIT have partnered with privately-owned Russian bank Gazprombank.
The alliance will result in what’s said to be the first esports debit card launched for Russian Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and Dota 2 players.
Beginning in June, a total of $450,000 (£355,351) in prize money will be up for grabs for players competing in CS:GO and Dota 2 tournaments on FACEIT’s platform. Alongside the initial prize pot, there will be a new prize pool unveiled at the beginning of each month.
Niccolo Maisto, Co-founder and CEO at FACEIT, commented on the partnership in a release: “We are very excited to launch the program with VISA and Gazprombank as our first partner in this world first collaboration.