TikTok Bans Cryptocurrency Promotion, What does it all mean?
Tiktok just recently banned users and advertisers from promoting cryptocurrencies on their platform but it is much more than that, you need to look at the bigger picture and understand that its not an attack on the crypto market. TikTok’s advertising policies clearly prohibits the marketing or advertising of not only cryptocurrency but also foreign exchange trading, money management, financial services such as lending and credit cards, trading platforms and various other investment services.
This may have been prompted by China’s influence over ByteDance and the delay of its Initial Public Offering that may be more than a delay but an indefinite one at that however its more than that as well. Influencers do just that, they get paid to advertise products and services to the masses in order to induce sales, that is what it all comes down to. So when a Tom Brady, Kylie Jenner, Huda Katan or Kim Kardashian promote a product or service they have a set audience and in the world of stocks, cryptos or even credit cards, it can induce activity, which may put TikTok in harms way.
Even though the social media platform doesn’t have anything really to do with the promotion, they are providing the platform that will allow that promotion and that is where the issue comes into play. Make no mistake its not just to be TikTok doing this, Jack Dorsey has already confirmed that Square’s Bitcoin wallet is banning those promotions, next stop will be Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram.
Reddit has become ground zero for stock and crypto promotion, Telegram has been used to do the same but with Telegram and other apps like Signal, basically those pump and dump messages can disappear in an instant while on main stream social media it isn’t as easy as that, there is a digital footprint that has hang time.
So before the crypto world panics and thinks TikTok is singling out cryptocurrency, they are not, its all financial products and services, I’m sure even mortgage and banking account promotion. Anyhow keep your heads screwed on straight crypto universe, its not a crypto attack, its just companies protecting themselves from liability.