India: Crypto Ads To Carry ‘Can Be Highly Risky’ Disclaimer

The Indian government dropped the bomb of 30% tax over crypto earnings in the latest budget session. Now, the Advertising Standards Council Of India (ASCI) has issued new guidelines for ads related to crypto in the country.

New Ad Rules for Crypto Companies

The new regulations will require ads related to cryptocurrency to carry a disclaimer warning viewers that these assets can be “highly risky”. These new rules will be effective from Apr 1, 2022.

Crypto products and NFTs are unregulated and can be highly risky. There may be no regulatory recourse for any loss from such transactions, ads over Crypto and NFTs need to carry this disclaimer warning

No advertisement for crypto/digital asset products or exchanges may show a minor, or someone who appears to be a minor, directly dealing with the product, or talking about the product, the ASCI added

India is witnessing a surge of crypto adoption among investors, especially youngsters. Many existing crypto exchange platforms are expanding their horizon in the country while some new players are also entering the market.

The ASCI noted ‘very aggressive’ advertising campaigns running by the platforms. Many of these advertisements do not completely disclose the risks related to the investment in cryptocurrencies.

The advertising watchdog warned that ‘Celebrities or prominent personalities who appear in crypto/NFT advertisements must take special care to ensure that they have done their due diligence about the statements and claims made in the advertisement, so as not to mislead consumers.’

Subhash Kamath, Chairman of ASCI asserted that Advertising related to cryptocurrency and other digital assets needs proper guidance as it is a new and emerging market. There must be made aware related to the risks so that they can proceed with caution

Earlier, RBI Governor, Shaktikanta Das who has been completely against the cryptocurrency ecosystem said that ‘It will undermine RBI’s ability to deal with issues related to financial stability. I think it is my duty to tell investors that when they are investing in cryptocurrencies, they should keep in mind that they are investing at their own risk’