Google is once again displaying cryptocurrency advertising, after the implementation of its revised financial products and services guidelines on August 3. The global corporation prohibited cryptocurrency and Initial Coin Offering (ICO)-related advertising three years ago, and the policy change enables regulated crypto companies to promote their services yet again.
Nevertheless, the company continues to maintain its position with respect to ICOs. Google’s cryptocurrency advertisement guideline modification was originally announced in June, and it states that “advertisers providing cryptocurrency exchanges and wallets” serving US customers are permitted to promote their services and goods provided they fulfill certain criteria.
The initiative may increase revenues for Alphabet, Google’s parent firm, but cryptocurrency advertisements will probably be a pittance compared to the business’s $147 billion in advertising revenue. Google’s stringent standards are intended to filter out dodgy marketing and obvious cryptocurrency frauds. Marketers must be enrolled with FinCEN as a “money services business” and with a minimum of one state as a money transmitter or a government or local domicile-chartered banking institution.
Ads promoting ICOs, DeFi trading methods, or the advertising of buying, selling, or trading cryptos are not permitted. Celebrity crypto promotions are also prohibited, which may assist to alleviate some of the problems associated with false publicity stunts. Google’s new policy also prohibits crypto advertising from connecting to webpages that provide “cryptocurrency trading indicators, cryptocurrency financial advice, aggregators or affiliate web pages providing related material or broker ratings.”
TikTok said in July that crypto-based marketing activities had been prohibited as part of an attempt to prohibit the site from advertising any financial services or goods. Redditors on the r/Bitcoin forum viewed the announcement that Bitcoin may now be marketed via Google as a “bullish” omen for the crypto, but user “Brief-Music-5825” said that Google should “block false crypto content also. The quantity of false news spreading FUD is astounding.”