Everything Marketers Should Know Before Advertising Crypto and NFT in India | Latest Government Guidelines for Crypto and NFT Advertising

Cryptocurrency and NFT have taken the world by a storm in just a few years, people have started taking them seriously and are investing in them. They are said to be the new future of currency, Bitcoin announced its existence in the year 2009 and since then, a number of cryptocurrencies have launched. Although the future of cryptocurrency is uncertain, young people are not shying away to show their interest in them.

At this age, there is hardly anyone who is not aware of NFTs and Cryptocurrency, they are becoming a medium of exchange and there are big companies who are accepting cryptocurrency as a form of payment.

With so many new rules, regulations and states of NFT and Crypto, the status of them has changed. For any kind of product or service, advertising is one of the most aspects; if not the most important factors for letting the world know that they exist.

Naturally, to make people more aware of cryptos and NFT and their features, advertisement is definitely going to be a strong need for marketing for all the business that is dealing with this industry.

Cryptos somehow are able to get recognized and are not banned entirely in the country, but the advertisement of these products needs to follow some guidelines. In this article, we will talk about the guidelines that companies have to follow while advertising cryptos and NFT related things in India. So let’s get started.

“A good advertisement is one which sells the product without drawing attention to itself.” –David Ogilvy

Guidelines for Crypto and NFT Related Advertising Released by ASCI

The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) as per the Government of India set some rules while advertising for Crypto and NFT related products as they are extremely risky. So people must be aware of the risks that they are going to take while investing in them.

All these guidelines will be applicable to all the ads released on and after April 1, 2022, and not to forget ads that are not complying with the guidelines will not appear in front of the public after 15^th April 2022.

Some of the guidelines related to Virtual Digital Assets (VDA) are:

• One of the disclaimers is “Crypto products and NFTs are unregulated and can be highly risky. There may be no regulatory recourse for any loss from such transactions.” It must be placed in every advertisement in such a way that it cannot be missed by anyone watching the advertisement.
• If the advertisement is in print, then the disclaimer must be placed in a space that has to be at least one-fifth of the space in the bottom, the font has to be big and clear enough, that it can be read properly.
• In a video ad, the disclaimer should be placed at the end and it must remain on screen for five seconds and the voiceover should be at a normal pace.
• If the ad is an audio one, then it should be spoken at a normal pace at the end.
• In social media advertisements, the disclaimer must be present in the caption as well as in the pictures and video attachments.
• Several words are forbidden to be used in the advertisement of Crypto and NFT related products and services. Worlds such as, ‘Custodian’, ‘Currency’, ‘Securities’ and ‘Depositories’
• Whatever information the advertisement of the products will provide to the consumers must not contradict the guidelines given by the Government of the country.
• The past performance of any products shall not be included in any biased form in the advertisements.
• The name and contact of the advertisers of VDA products and services advertisement must be clear in the advertisement so that a consumer can contact them if the need arises.
• Advertisements must avoid making any kind of promise that states that there will be an increase in profit related to those products.
• Minors are not allowed to be in the advertisements dealing with the products and services.
• Ads must not be presented in such a way that it will show the consumers that while investing in them, one does not have to think twice.
• Advertisements must not show that if anyone invests in the products, it will solve their money or personality problems.
• Comparison with others assets must be avoided.
• Any kind of celebrity, who is going to be present in the advertisement and endorse the products or services, must be very careful. They should avoid making any claims that can lead to a misunderstanding that may confuse the consumers.

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Conclusion

Cryptos and NFT related products status are quite uncertain in the country. All the guidelines by the ASCI are to protect the common people from facing any kind of uncertain future while investing in these products. By following these guidelines, the companies can advertise their products without any hindrance.

FAQs

Why were the guidelines released by ASCI?

As to protect the investors from investing and losing money after watching misleading ads, ASCI released a few guidelines that every advertiser has to follow.

Is investing in cryptos safe?

Crypto is a highly volatile currency, so it is quite risky but it can be profitable as well.

Can you run Facebook ads for crypto?

You can run ads on Facebook but you have to follow the guidelines and get approval from the company.