Crypto Ads in Thailand Must Include Clear Investment Warnings, New Regulations Require – Regulation of Bitcoin News

Thailand has introduced tighter rules that will oblige crypto companies to inform potential customers about the investment risk on their ads. The new regulations also prohibit businesses in the industry from making misleading or exaggerated claims.

Securities Watchdog adopts stricter advertising rules for crypto platforms in Thailand

Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved new requirements for crypto ads, Bloomberg and Reuters reported citing the regulator. According to a statement released on Thursday, the changes come after the SEC found that some ads lacked any warnings about the risks associated with cryptocurrencies or contained only positive information.

Crypto firms in Thailand will now be obliged to clearly indicate relevant risks to investors in their advertisements, and the warnings must be easy to notice. They should present a balanced view of expected returns and mention both positive and negative factors. The advertisements must not contain misleading, exaggerated or false claims.

Thai crypto companies, which have advertised extensively through digital media and billboards, now have to limit their campaign to official channels such as their own websites. They will also have to provide regulators with information about the advertising terms. The Securities and Exchange Commission explained in the announcement:

Operators must provide details of advertisements and expenditures, including the use of influencers and bloggers, to the SEC, including terms and timeframes.

Companies working with crypto assets in Thailand will have 30 days to comply with the new regulations launched by the SEC this week. The tightening of advertising rules follows a global market downturn that affected many units in the industry.

One example is Zipmex, a crypto exchange that operates under a Thai license and in other jurisdictions. The coin trading platform and its regional parent, Zipmex Pte, halted withdrawals last month. In mid-August, the latter was granted three months of protection from creditors by a court in Singapore, where authorities are considering stricter rules for private crypto investors.

The SEC recently fined Zipmex 1.92 million baht (over $50,000) for suspending withdrawals. Other crypto companies were also hit with penalties. An executive from Thailand-based cryptocurrency exchange Bitkub was fined 8.5 million baht (more than $230,000) for alleged insider trading.

Do you expect Thailand to tighten other crypto regulations as well? Tell us in the comments section below.

Lubomir Tassev

Lubomir Tassev is a journalist from tech-savvy Eastern Europe who likes Hitchens’ quote: “To be a writer is what I am, rather than what I do.” Besides crypto, blockchain and fintech, international politics and economics are two other sources of inspiration.