Facebook Bans All Cryptocurrency, ICO Ads

By Edward Leano, Christian Post Contributor Thursday, February 01, 2018

Facebook has now banned all cryptocurrency and initial coin offering adverts on their social media platform, citing a drive to remove "misleading or deceptive promotional practices" associated with them. The ban covers Facebook partner Instagram, too, as well as the company's Audience Network advertising platform.

The new advertising policy has been added to Facebook's section for Prohibited Content, under "Prohibited Financial Products and Services." The new ban prohibits advertisers from promoting financial products and services like binary options, initial coin offerings, or cryptocurrency in general.

"We want people to continue to discover and learn about new products and services through Facebook ads without fear of scams or deception," Facebook Product Management Director Rob Leathern explained in his news post on Wednesday, Jan. 31.

"That said, there are many companies who are advertising binary options, ICOs and cryptocurrencies that are not currently operating in good faith," he added.

Leathern added that the new policy has been made "intentionally broad" to cast a wide net over deceptive or misleading adverts, with Facebook planning to revisit this policy after some time.

That means that even legitimate cryptocurrency traders and service providers may not be able to run ads on Facebook starting Wednesday, as Cointelegraph notes. The all-out ban has elicited mixed reactions from social media users, in the meantime.

With cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin and others going mainstream, a number of scams promising unrealistic profits from crypto-investment schemes and initial coin offerings have followed, as well.

Facebook has provided some examples in their new policy guide, including several advertising binary options, "no-risk cryptocurrency," an ICO ad, and one that encourages users to "Use your retirement funds to buy Bitcoin!"

"This policy is part of an ongoing effort to improve the integrity and security of our ads, and to make it harder for scammers to profit from a presence on Facebook," Leathern added at the end of his announcement.