ASCI releases ad guidelines for cryptos

New Delhi: To safeguard investor interest and ensure that advertisements do not mislead or exploit consumers' lack of expertise on crypto assets, Indian advertising industry's self-governing body has come out with guidelines for virtual digital asset advertising. The guidelines have been issued after consulting industry stakeholders, including the Union government.

The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) noted that even as the government continues to work on the framework for virtual digital assets (VDA), commonly referred to as crypto or non-fungible token (NFT) products, advertising for these products has been very aggressive over the past few months. "ASCI noted that several of these advertisements do not adequately disclose the risks associated with such products," it said in a release.

As per the guidelines, all virtual digital asset-related ads released on or after April 1 must carry the disclaimer, "Crypto products and NFTs are unregulated and can be highly risky. There may be no regulatory recourse for any loss from such transactions." The disclaimer will have to be carried in promotional content in print, video and audio mediums.

In print or static, the disclaimer must be equal to at least 1/5th of the advertising space at the bottom of the advertisement in an easy to read font, against a plain background, and to the maximum font size afforded by the space. In audio, the disclaimer must be spoken at the end of the advertisement and the voiceover should be at a normal speaking pace and must not be hurried.

The guidelines also cover social media posts. The advertising body has also barred advertisers to use words "currency", "securities", "custodian" and "depositories" in advertisements of VDA products or services as "consumers associate these terms with regulated products". Also, advertisements that provide information on the cost or profitability of VDA products must contain clear, accurate, sufficient and updated information.