Thai SEC tightens laws on crypto ads amid broader market decline Crypto ads should display clear and visible warnings about investment risks: SEC

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand (SEC Thailand) has asked cryptocurrency companies operating in the country to include clear and visible warnings about the risks associated with virtual tokens and crypto investments.

SEC Guideline for Crypto Ads

In an email last week, the capital markets regulator asked companies to refrain from providing false and misleading information in their advertisements. They were also asked to provide information about advertising terms to the SEC. The new rules should be complied with within 30 days, and old ads that do not comply should be removed.

“Operators must provide details of advertisements and expenditures including the use of influencers and bloggers to the SEC including terms and timeframe,” the SEC said.

The new SEC guidelines for crypto ads prohibit false, misleading, and exaggerated claims and ensure that ads carry clear and easily visible warnings about risk. Crypto firms have been asked to limit advertising to official platforms such as their websites and present a balanced image by mentioning both positive and negative aspects of digital assets.

Action against Zipmex and Bitkub

On Wednesday, the SEC fined Zipmex Thailand 1.92 million baht (about $52,344) for suddenly suspending trading on its platform without following the norms and stopping deposits and withdrawals.

Earlier this week, the agency fined Thailand’s largest crypto trading platform’s CTO $200,000 for insider trading. CTO Samret Wajanasathian made large purchases of Bitkub’s native coin KUB between September and November 2021 after learning that Siam Commercial Bank (SCBX) is negotiating a takeover deal for the digital asset exchange.

On Sunday, SCBX announced that it will not proceed with its planned $500 million takeover of Bitkub due to these issues.

Stricter advertising standards in Spain, UK

The SEC’s tough stance on crypto advertising comes in the wake of a broader market downturn that saw $2 trillion of market capitalization disappear in roughly six months. Thailand is the latest in a growing list of countries that have tightened their crypto advertising policies.

In January, Spain’s National Securities Market Commission introduced a new set of guidelines for crypto advertising. It said crypto firms should “ensure that the advertising of the products offers true, understandable and non-misleading content, and includes a prominent warning about the associated risks.”

Earlier this month, the UK’s advertising watchdog banned two ads of Arsenal’s fan token $AFC for failing to “illustrate the risks of crypto-investing” and downplaying “serious and potentially costly financial decision.”