After banning cryptocurrency advertisements on its platform last year, Facebook has now loosened its stance on cryptocurrency ads – a change in policy that is accompanied by rumors that Facebook is planning to launch its own cryptocurrency.
Facebook published a blog post on Wednesday, saying that it was offering a few updates regarding “blockchain, cryptocurrency and financial products and services.” Speaking about the decision that advertisers must obtain prior written approval in order to advertise related ads, Facebook now no longer requires pre-approval for blockchain and crypto related ads.
The blog post reads,
…an ad that directs to a landing page that features a restricted product, such as a cryptocurrency exchange, will still require prior approval. Or, if the landing page includes a prohibited product, such as an initial coin offering (ICO), we will reject it. We’re committed to preventing misleading advertising on our platforms, especially in the area of financial products and services. Because of this, people who want to promote cryptocurrency and closely related products, such as cryptocurrency exchanges and mining software and hardware, will still have to go through a review process.
Facebook has been attracting a lot of attention in the industry following a report by Bloomberg that it was planning to launch a cryptocurrency, which rumours say will focus on the remittances markets of countries such as India, and make use of WhatsApp.
All indications seem to point towards a release soon – Facebook has posted new related job openings, while another rumor says that Facebook is looking to raise $1 billion for the initiative.
