Dubai Issues Guidelines for Crypto Promotion

Dubai’s digital asset regulatory authority has issued regulatory guidelines regarding the marketing, advertising, and promotion of cryptocurrencies.

The announcement comes during the commencement of the Minimum Viable Product (MVP) phase, as Dubai’s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA) launched operations for its customized licensing regime this month, the Khaleej Times reported.

According to the announcement, safeguarding community interests is the highest priority with regard to any consumer solicitation or the dissemination of mass-market information. Therefore, the regulations specify that entities granted MVP licenses must design their marketing and communications activities around this priority before they can begin operations.

The announcement also emphasized that these regulations cover all forms of outreach, communications, and advertising. In addition to the general publication of information, this also includes awareness building, customer engagement, and/or investor solicitation. 

It also clarified the entities to which the regulations applied. That includes any entity leveraging Dubai-based media sites, search platforms, and online or offline publishing channels, as well as anyone explicitly targeting customers within the Dubai market. In the latter case, responsible entities must establish guardrails on permissible audience segments, in addition to maintaining content obligations. 

The announcement also underscored that all content dissemination channels operating from Dubai must ensure compliance with prevailing guidance. The guidelines provide further obligations for Dubai licensed VASPs, as well as any advertising platforms that are positioning VA content, to ensure factual accuracy, explicitly demonstrate any promotional intent, and in no way mislead on the guaranteed nature of their returns. The guidelines mark the next step in Dubai’s efforts to become a global cryptocurrency hub.

“The VARA has identified an aspect of extreme importance and sensitivity for the virtual assets industry,” said Kokila Alagh, founder at KARM Legal Consultants. “It is imperative for users to have accurate and full details to make an informed decision as to their VA exposure. These regulations will go a long way in ensuring that users have the needed information before making their decisions.” 

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