UK Regulator Bans 2 Crypto.com Ads in Latest Crackdown

Investors Pour Almost $30B into Crypto Firms

One week after United Kingdom regulators censured a football club for what it called irresponsible crypto ads, the country’s marketing watchdog has banned two ads from Crypto.com, according to a ruling on Wednesday, (Jan. 5).

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) followed up on complaints for an ad that appeared in the Daily Mail app on Sept. 1 of last year which featured the tagline, “Buy Bitcoin with credit card instantly.”

The other, which was seen on the Love Balls app on July 30, pledged “up to 3.5% p.a” (per annum). But the number cited in the text increased to 8.5%. Love Balls is a cellphone by Lion Studios where players must draw on the screen to make two different balls move toward each other and eventually touch.

In its decisions to ban the ads, the ASA said the online promotions “trivialized investment in cryptoassets.”

“We understood that consumers would interpret the claim ‘Earn up to 3.5% p.a.’ which increased to ‘Earn up to 8.5% p.a.’ to mean that any deposit could increase by the highest amount shown,” the ASA said.

The ads failed to disclose the risks of the investment, were irresponsible, and seized on consumers’ inexperience, the regulator added.

ASA also noted its objection to the implication that consumers should buy crypto on credit without any warning of the dangers of going into debt.

In response, Crypto.com told the ASA that the ads were immediately removed once the firm learned of the agency’s concerns. The company said it has enhanced the operational oversight of U.K. advertising and is drafting a new U.K. marketing policy that includes the Financial Conduct Authority’ (FCA) Treating Customers Fairly outcomes for customers. The FCA regulates the U.K.’s financial services industry and the companies that operate in it.

This is the latest ban by the ASA on crypto ads that it sees as misleading.

Last month, PYMNTS reported The Arsenal Football Club was called out by the ASA for what regulators called irresponsible advertising for crypto-related fan tokens. At the time, the ASA said the online promotions “trivialized investment in cryptoassets.”