In January, Facebook published a list of prohibited content that it considered harmful to its users. This was part of its broader efforts to make the platform safer. With regard to financial services, the policy stated: “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 and cryptocurrency.”
The advertising ban extended to Facebook-owned platforms like Instagram and the Network Audience. The ban was intended to protect Facebook users from scammers who were capitalizing on the expanding ICO market to scam users.  
While the ban was all-encompassing leading to concerns that legitimate crypto-related projects would be affected, Facebook director of product management Rob Leathern did clarify that the policy was designed to be updated as time went along and understanding of the space further increased. “This policy is intentionally broad while we work to better detect deceptive and misleading advertising practices, and enforcement will begin to ramp up across our platforms including Facebook, Audience Network, and Instagram. We will revisit this policy and how we enforce it as our signals improve.”
Less restrictive – but still restrictive
Although portrayed in some media as a ‘reversal’ of its position, the updated policy actually only provides crypto  related advertisers with a little respite. The previous prohibition on ICO advertising, for example, is maintained. 
While other cryptocurrency-related adverts may ultimately run on the platform, they will need to ‘apply’ first. The application requires advertisers to group their proposed notice under four main labels. These are cryptocurrency products and services, education on cryptocurrency, cryptocurrency industry news, and other content related to cryptocurrency products and services.
Additionally, advertisers will need to divulge other information pertaining to their business such as the website, any and all relevant licenses, a brief written explanation of the business as well as other related data such as location and business name. “Advertisers wanting to run ads for cryptocurrency products and services must submit an application to help us assess their eligibility — including any licenses they have obtained, whETHer they are traded on a public stock exchange, and other relevant public background on their business.”
The updated policy went into effect on the same day. While it is not explicitly stated in Facebook’s announcement, it is expected the revision applies to Instagram and other Facebook-owned platforms.
What does this mean for the cryptocurrency world?
While the new policy can be considered a step forward, it is likely that some advertisers will be unable to meet the requirements set out by the tech giant. This is because the application process requires an extensive amount of data that many projects may not have. Leathern addresses these concerns and reiterates that the policy will continue to be updated to better serve the community.  “Given these restrictions, not everyone who wants to advertise will be able to do so. But we’ll listen to feedback, look at how well this policy works and continue to study this technology so that, if necessary, we can revise it over time.”
Following the total cryptocurrency-related ban published in January, there were divergent opinions on how the move would affect the cryptocurrency space. There was a general consensus that the move would work well to protect members of the general population who were new to crypto-related trading and were therefore more likely to be scammed through advertisements on the platform.
This was at the height of the ICO craze where the practice had exploded into mainstream thought and as a result, many were looking to turn a quick profit through their participation.
As the crypto craze grew to greater heights and more people were introduced to the space, scammers had access to fertile ground for their endeavors. Through a combination of ill-research on the part of the investors as well as convincing, yet often misleading ads, scammers were able to garner a pretty penny.
In the months following the January ban, it is likely scammers have had to work harder to achieve any profits as they did not have access to the wide base of people found on Facebook. While the policy undoubtedly made the social-media platform safer, questions arise as to whETHer the move had a perceptible effect on the cryptocurrency space in general.
This is because of the growing number of communication channels that are employed by various projects within the cryptocurrency community. While projects may create Facebook pages for their product or service, communication typically occurs through other applications like as Telegram, Slack, Discord, and Reddit. With the bulk of ICO and related crypto information being transmitted through these applications there is a sense within the community that these are the de-facto ‘approved’ communication channels.
Additionally, there is the fact that serious projects have shown growth without using Facebook ads. Many of the leading digital currencies did not benefit from running advertisements on any social media platforms. Instead, they exhibited growth because of engagement with their community through their set communication channels. Projects that were based on sound technological innovations achieved a greater amount of success.
This sentiment that no crypto project lives or dies by Facebook is widely shared within the crypto community. Vincent Jacques, CEO of Chaintrade echoes this stating: “While having one less place to advertise your ICO could affect the bottom line, I really don’t think any project in the entire crypto space has Facebook to thank for its success. If you want to truly succeed in this space, all you have to do is create a viable product that will better society, your investors, or further technology. Do this correctly and will reach more followers than any Facebook ad ever could.”
To conclude, Facebook’s advertising policy will serve to protect people new to the cryptocurrency space from scammers. It may also serve to dissuade fake ICOs from attempting to attract investors. This may serve to add a much-needed layer of legitimacy to the ICO. However, the growths and dips of the cryptocurrency space are unrelated to the actions of the social media giant in this regard and it is likely things will stay this way.