The Advertising Standards Council of India has issued advertising and marketing standards for crypto assets and related services. “Before framing these rules, we had multiple rounds of discussion with the government, financial sector regulators, and industry players.”
India’s Crypto Advertising Guidelines Have Been Released
“Guidelines for advertising and promotion of virtual digital assets and services,” published by the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) on Wednesday.
According to ASCI, the restrictions apply to all marketing for virtual digital assets (VDA), which are “often referred to as crypto or NFT [non-fungible token] items.”
Subhash Kamath, Chairman of ASCI, explained:
Before drafting these guidelines, we held numerous rounds of discussions with the government, financial sector regulators, and industry players.
To begin, all crypto-related advertisements must include the following disclaimer: “Crypto goods and NFTs are unregulated and can be extremely dangerous.” There could be no regulatory remedy for any losses incurred as a result of these transactions.” According to India’s advertising authorities, the standards describe how the warning should be made such that “it is prominent and unmissable by an average customer.”
Second, the guidelines provide the following information:
Consumers identify the phrases ‘currency,”securities,’ ‘custodian,’ and ‘depositories’ with regulated products, hence they may not be used in marketing for VDA products or services.
Furthermore, advertisements must not include a minor or someone who looks to be a minor.
Advertisements must not pretend to be a solution to financial or other issues, nor must they promise a certain increase in earnings in the future. “Information on prior performance shall not be supplied in any way that is incomplete or biassed.” Returns for periods of less than 12 months will be excluded, according to ASCI.
“VDA products may not be compared to any other regulated asset class,” the advertising watchdog noted, noting that commercials should not minimise the dangers associated with the asset class.
A celebrity endorsement is also addressed in the criteria. “Celebrities or notable personalities who feature in VDA commercials must take great care to ensure that they have done their due diligence on the statements and claims made in the advertisement,” ASCI said, adding:
All advertising released or published on or after April 1, 2022 will be subject to the guidelines.
“Advertisers and media owners must also ensure that, from April 15, 2022, all previous advertising do not appear in the public domain unless they comply with the criteria,” ASCI stated.
Disclaimer: These are the writer’s opinions and should not be considered investment advice. Readers should do their own research.
