SEBI, an Indian regulator, has proposed banning public figures from endorsing cryptocurrency products.

SEBI has advised that no “prominent public personalities, including celebrities and sportsmen,” should advocate crypto items. Companies that advertise cryptos and digital assets, according to the market regulator, should also post disclosures outlining probable legal infractions.

In February, the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) released crypto advertising rules, and the Finance Ministry invited the SEBI to disclose its position on such advertisements.

When members of India’s Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance posed concerns about several aspects of cryptocurrency last month, SEBI explained its stand on the matter. As a result, the market regulator provided the Parliamentary Panel with a full written response.

“Given that crypto products are unregulated, notable public personalities including celebrities, sportsmen, etc. or their voice must not be used for endorsement/advertisement of crypto products,” the SEBI reportedly responded.

As per the ASCI guidelines, all ads must carry a disclaimer saying, “Crypto products and NFTs are unregulated and can be highly risky. There may be no regulatory recourse for any loss from such transactions.” Such a disclaimer must be made in the following manner so that it is prominent and unmissable by an average consumer, the advertising watchdog has said.

The market regulator further added that prominent public figures should be held responsible for making such endorsements which is a possible violation of the Consumer Protection Act or any other law.

SEBI suggested that the given disclaimer by the ASCI must add the possible law violations in crypto transactions. “Dealings in crypto products may lead to prosecution for possible violation of Indian laws such as FEMA, BUDS Act, PMLA, etc.”

Given the volatile nature of cryptos and consumer interest, SEBI’s proposal may not be completely unwarranted.

Over the last few weeks, the crypto market has witnessed a steep decline. There is unrest in the market caused due to TerraUSD’s Luna’s recent crash from $116 on April 5 to $O May 13, which depicts a 100 per cent decrease in its value. Moreover, world’s biggest cryptocurrency, Bitcoin has dropped 35.75 percent YTD and is currently at Rs 22.85 lakh. It has lost more than half of its value since it hit an all-time high of $69,000 in November last year. Till now, crypto has not been regulated and has been declared virtual digital assets (VDA) for taxation purpose only. Since VDAs are a risky category, SEBI wants prominent personalities with a huge following to take special care and proper research about the statements and claims made in the advertisement, so as to not mislead consumers, especially the young.

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• SEBI, an Indian regulator, has proposed banning public figures from endorsing cryptocurrency products.
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