After speculation earlier this month, Twitter has officially confirmed its decision to prohibit cryptocurrency-related advertisements. The ban encompasses initial coin offerings (ICOs), digital asset exchanges, and token sales.
According to a March 26 report by Reuters, Twitter Inc is set to initiate a ban on cryptocurrency-related advertising starting Tuesday.
Rumors have been confirmed by Twitter, stating that the social media platform will follow in the footsteps of Facebook and Google by restricting advertisements related to cryptocurrency.
Reuters was informed by Twitter that advertisements promoting Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) and token sales would be restricted under its new policy. This policy, set to roll out over the next 30 days, will also prohibit ads from cryptocurrency exchanges and wallet services, except for those operated by publicly listed companies on major stock exchanges. In Japan, Twitter plans to restrict crypto exchange advertisements to those overseen by the national financial regulator.
User safety has been cited by Twitter as the main reason for enforcing the ban. While previous steps had been taken to stop crypto-related accounts from interacting in misleading ways, further action was encouraged after similar restrictions were introduced by Facebook Inc. and Alphabet Inc. (Google).
The announcement from Twitter drove crypto markets—already on a downward trend Monday—into a steeper decline.
In a conversation with Reuters, financial consultancy Kapronasia’s director, Zennon Kapron, highlighted that the potential risks posed to Twitter may have served as an additional reason for implementing the ban.
“With the surge in ICOs entering the market, determining which projects are legitimate and which are fraudulent has become nearly unmanageable — especially for platforms such as Twitter or Facebook. While it’s likely that advertising from ICOs generated substantial revenue for Twitter, the potential fallout from deceptive schemes has rendered that income not worth the associated risk,” explained Kapron.
In January of this year, Facebook imposed limitations on cryptocurrency advertisements, while Google declared a similar prohibition earlier this month, scheduled to take effect in June 2018.
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