According to CNBC, Facebook said on Wednesday that it will loosen its ban on cryptocurrency advertising on its platform. The result will allow businesses related to crypto and blockchain to promote their projects on the social network. The Facebook crypto ad ban first came into effect in January 2018.
Facebook Crypto Ad Ban
The social media giant first started blocking ads on initial coin offerings, saying it had concerns for its users’ welfare. It was afraid that many would fall for scams and fraudulent crypto products.
But earlier this year its stance began to change. In January 2019, it began allowing ads from projects that had received prior written approval.
Was it coincidental that around the same time there were murmurs that Facebook itself was going to venture into the cryptocurrency space with its own coin?
Now, the social media giant has gone another step further, making it so that crypto-related ads will no longer require prior written approval.
In a blog post released yesterday the media giant said:
“We’ve listened to feedback and assessed the policy’s effectiveness […] While we will still require people to apply to run ads promoting cryptocurrency, starting today, we will narrow this policy to no longer require pre-approval for ads related to blockchain technology, industry news, education or events related to cryptocurrency.”
The company’s initial ban was met with ire from many businesses that felt the new policy was unfair. The restriction on advertising meant several projects lost hundreds of thousands of dollars because their ad campaigns were suddenly banned.
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It also is a convenient time for Facebook to change its opinion of cryptocurrency advertising as it is reportedly working on its own blockchain project.
According to several sources, the company is building its own stablecoin that will allow WhatsApp users to send cryptocurrency payments to one another. Further, last week it was reported that Facebook has been in talks with financial firms and e-commerce companies to support its project.
Are you happy to see the Facebook crypto ad ban reversed?
Featured Image: DepositPhotos © Kesu01
