The financial regulator of India, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has issued a warning that may affect how crypto assets and products are advertised in the country.
SEBI has requested that celebrities stop promoting crypto assets and products because of the risks attached to this set of products. Celebrities tend to possess influence over their fans and endorsing an asset may convince others to purchase them despite the risks.
To ensure that it has the power to achieve this, SEB has reportedly reached out to the Indian government to give them the power to regulate the content that is posted on social networks.
According to reports, the Securities and Exchange Board of India has submitted its potential plans regarding the endorsement of crypto by celebrities and other crypto strategies to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance. SEBI wants celebrities to disclose the risks that are attached to cryptocurrencies if they have to post about them. At the moment, there is no regulation on the action of endorsing crypto products by popular figures in the country.
Reports state that the guidelines contain the following,
"Since this is a risky category (virtual digital assets), celebrities or prominent personalities who appear in such advertisements must take special care to ensure that they have done their due diligence about the statements and claims made in the advertisement, so as not to mislead consumers."
The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), as a result of the growth in the use of crypto products in the country, released twelve guidelines that had to be followed if virtual assets are advertised. This set of guidelines was made available to the public a while back on April 1. As part of the guidelines, every crypto advert has to include a disclaimer stating that crypto assets and products are "unregulated and can be highly risky."
SEBI has recommended a new form of disclaimer, which includes, "Given that crypto products are unregulated, prominent public figures including celebrities, sportsmen, etc. or their voice shall not be used for endorsement/advertisement of crypto products."