Google will ban cryptocurrency ads from its AdWords network in June

By Kevin Parrish March 14, 2018

Google has announced that it will block all advertisements related to cryptocurrencies starting this June. The company recently updated its AdWords-based Financial Services policy to restrict various forms of advertisements, including forex and financial spread betting and unregulated Contract for Difference (CFD) trading. The cryptocurrency ban includes all related content such as initial coin offerings (ICOs), virtual wallets, trading advice, and more.

On the whole, Google is addressing advertisements based on “unregulated or speculative financial products.” It’s part of the company’s continuous sweep to respect the user experience by removing unsavory advertisements and banning publishers from its AdWords network. Just in 2017 alone, Google removed more than 3.2 billion ads – more than 100 bad ads per second – and banned around 320,000 publishers.

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Google lists cryptocurrency ads under its “emerging threats” banner despite the rising demand for digital money. The problem with cryptocurrencies From Google’s standpoint is that they’re not regulated, so investors have no guarantee of safe, honest trading despite market claims. There’s also the rising trend of cryptocurrency startups generating cash through initial coin offerings, and then disappearing with the funds.

For instance, Twitter is littered with cryptocurrency-related scams. Individuals are creating “verified” accounts and promising big returns for investing small amounts of digital coins. The scammers then disappear with the cryptocurrency. An advertisement with a similar offering could do even more financial damage. This is one scenario Google likely wants to avoid.

Facebook introduced a similar ban on its social network in January. According to the company, ads must NOT “promote financial products and services that are frequently associated with misleading or deceptive promotional practices, such as binary options, initial coin offerings, or cryptocurrency.”

Some of the advertisement examples no longer allowed on Facebook include: “New ICO! Buy tokens at a 15-percent discount NOW!” and “Click here to learn more about our no-risk cryptocurrency that enables instant payments to anyone in the world.”

“We want people to continue to discover and learn about new products and services through Facebook ads without fear of scams or deception,” Facebook states. “That said, there are many companies who are advertising binary options, ICOs and cryptocurrencies that are not currently operating in good faith.”

Google said on Wednesday, March 14, that not only did the company ban 320,000 publishers from its advertisement network in 2017 but it blacklisted nearly 90,000 websites and 700,000 mobile apps. Google also removed legitimate ads from two million individual pages each month that violated its policies. Google tacked on another 8,700 pages after updating its policies in April 2017 to protect web surfers against “dangerous and derogatory content.”

Subscription-free websites generate revenue by displaying advertisements stemming from platforms like Google’s AdWords. But for a free, ad-supported internet to work, those ads need to be safe and effective. For Google, that means investing in talent and technology over the last 15 years to crack down on ad-based fraud, scammers, and malware. Banning cryptocurrency ads is just the latest step in that direction.

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Microsoft Bing joins Google, Facebook in banning cryptocurrency advertisements

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Joining Google and Facebook, Microsoft's Bing search engine will no longer show advertising for cryptocurrency, related products, and unregulated binary options. The news arrives by way of a short post on the Bing Ads blog that says the change will be made to Microsoft's global financial product and services policies in June prior to a complete ban of these ads in late June or early July.

"Because cryptocurrency and related products are not regulated, we have found them to present a possible elevated risk to our users, with the potential for bad actors to participate in predatory behaviors, or otherwise scam consumers," said Melissa Alsoszatai-Petheo, advertiser policy manager. "To help protect our users from this risk, we have made the decision to disallow advertising."
Cryptocurrency -- along with the related services and products -- join other "legally questionable business opportunities" on Microsoft's ban list,such as Ponzi schemes, pyramid schemes, and investments that depend on adding participants to a scheme. For instance, an ad can say: "Save more of your money," followed by "learn this money-saving tip and save more." A noncompliant version would say something like: "Save your money today," followed by "sign up for this secret or risk losing your savings."
Microsoft's Bing Ads polices already ban virtual currencies that are designed to facilitate illegal purposes. Examples include avoiding applicable taxes, money laundering, and the promotion of fake/forged virtual currencies.
Facebook introduced a similar ban on its social network in January. According to the company, ads are not allowed to “promote financial products and services that are frequently associated with misleading or deceptive promotional practices, such as binary options, initial coin offerings, or cryptocurrency.” The company said its new policy is intentionally broad.
"We want people to continue to discover and learn about new products and services through Facebook ads without fear of scams or deception," said Rob Leathern, Facebook product management director. "That said, there are many companies who are advertising binary options, ICOs, and cryptocurrencies that are not currently operating in good faith."
Google announced a similar move in March, stating that all advertisements related to cryptocurrency and unregulated investments will be banned from its AdWords advertisement platform. Cryptocurrencies are not regulated, so investors have no guarantee of safe, honest trading despite market claims. There’s also the rising trend of cryptocurrency startups generating cash through initial coin offerings, and then disappearing with the funds.
The value of a Bitcoin reached an all-time high on December 16, 2017, at just over $19,000 but has since fallen to $8,518 as of May 15, 2018. The lowest point of the year thus far was $6,620 in early April. Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin said in February that cryptocurrencies are hyper-volatile assets and not ideal for long-term investments. But the cryptocurrency craze continues, stringing along scam artists looking for eager investors.
But not through Bing.
"We are always evaluating our policies to ensure a safe and engaging experience for our Bing users and the digital advertising ecosystem," Alsoszatai-Petheo said.