As a start-up ourselves, this uncertainty is a constant battle for Ovoro. Today, we will talk about how these restrictions have changed over time and the challenges we face even when providing a risk-free platform for our users.
Ovoro is a crypto trading app designed to make it easier for regular people to trade cryptocurrency and benefit from it. The app rewards users with points for completing tasks, which can be redeemed for real money.
Our free app makes it simple for anybody to invest in crypto and set their gains on autopilot. The platform is still in development and not yet available to the public. As we approach our beta phase, we have been working hard to get users’ feedback.
To get said feedback early on, we had planned to release a risk-free version of the app with fake money. This would allow users to experience the app and give us their thoughts without any real assets at stake. However, this is not as straightforward as it seems.
In fact, it turns out that advertising our cryptocurrency platform is widely prohibited, even if it is risk-free.
To understand why this is the case, we need to take a step back and look at the history of cryptocurrency regulation. Crypto first came onto the scene in 2009 with the launch of Bitcoin by Satoshi Nakamoto.
There were very few rules or regulations around cryptocurrency in the early days. This was partly because the technology was new and not well understood nor adopted. It was also because there were no real crypto assets at stake.
Often described as the “Wild West,” this unregulated era allowed for a lot of money laundering and illegal activity to take place via cryptocurrency. That gave cryptocurrency a bad reputation and made it associated with crime.
Although some government officials took action against crypto in its early days, most countries left the job of cleaning up the dark side of the internet to law enforcement. Then, suddenly, crypto was no longer used only for illegal activity. With the bull run of 2017, cryptocurrency became mainstream, and its use expanded beyond criminal activity.
Cryptocurrencies were now being used as securities, commodities, and even currencies. This newfound mainstream status led to greater scrutiny from governments and financial institutions.
They began to realize that they could no longer ignore cryptocurrency. In order to protect their citizens and regulate the industry, they needed to act. And so, the first advertising restrictions were born.
A big part of this hasty creation of restrictions was the rise of Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs).
An ICO is a type of fundraising where companies offer digital tokens in exchange for investment. This was a popular method of fundraising in the early days of cryptocurrency, as it allowed companies to raise money without going through traditional financial institutions.
They became very popular in 2017, with over $6 billion being raised via ICOs. However, many of these ICOs were scams. Since no regulations were in place, there was no way for investors to get their money back in the event of price manipulation or a rug pull. A rug pull is when the creators would simply take the money and run, leaving investors with nothing.
The SEC (US Securities and Exchange Commission) began to crack down on ICOs, deeming many of them fraudulous. They also began to levy fines against companies that were advertising ICOs illegally, claiming that the coins were unregistered securities.
As a result of the SEC’s actions, many companies have withdrawn from advertising their ICOs, exchanges, and wallets. These bans significantly impacted companies looking to raise money or promote their product. With the most prominent advertising platforms off-limits, they were forced to look for other ways to reach potential investors.
Now that governing bodies are involved, they’ve also imposed restrictions on cryptocurrency exchanges, wallets, and other services.
The European Union has taken a relatively hands-off approach to cryptocurrency regulation. However, they have put in place some consumer protection measures. For example, the EU requires exchanges to verify the identity of their users. They’ve also banned certain types of advertising, such as ads that target children.
If an exchange wants to operate in the EU, they need to obtain a license from one of the EU countries. This process is expensive and time-consuming, so many exchanges choose not to bother. As a result, there are very few exchanges operating in the EU.
The EU recently proposed a set of rules that would bring all cryptocurrency exchanges and wallets under the supervision of financial authorities. For example, exchanges operating in Europe now have to adhere to 6AMLD, the EU’s anti-money laundering directive.
The bill would force exchanges to share customer data with authorities and report any suspicious activity. It would also require exchanges to verify the identity of their users and where funds are being sent.
The United States has taken a more laissez-faire approach to cryptocurrency regulation. The SEC has only brought an enforcement action against a handful of exchanges and ICOs. They’ve also issued a few warnings to investors about investing in cryptocurrency.
The SEC has left exchanges and other service providers alone for the most part. As a result, many exchanges and other services are available to US investors.
However, the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) has said that Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are taxable property. This means that US investors need to pay taxes on any gains they make from buying and selling cryptocurrency.
Asian countries have taken a variety of approaches to cryptocurrency regulation. China has taken the most aggressive stance, banning all cryptocurrency exchanges and wallets. They’ve also cracked down on Bitcoin mining, which is the process of creating a new Bitcoin.
Other Asian countries, such as Japan and South Korea, have taken a more permissive approach. They’ve put in place regulations that require exchanges to verify the identity of their users and follow anti-money laundering rules. These countries have also licensed several exchanges.
As you can see, governments from all over the world are starting to get involved in the regulation of cryptocurrency. This is a good thing, as it will help to protect consumers from scams and fraud. However, it’s deeply affected many legitimate businesses, such as Ovoro.
It is now complicated to advertise a cryptocurrency coin, exchange, or wallet on Google, Facebook, or any other major advertising platform.
In January 2018, Google updated its financial services policy to ban all cryptocurrency-related advertising, including ICOs, wallets, and exchanges. This was a massive disappointment, as Google is one of the biggest advertising platforms in the world.Today, they lifted the ban under very strict conditions.
Facebook followed suit soon afterward, updating its advertising policy to only allow pre-approved creators to run cryptocurrency-related ads. Other platforms, such as Twitter, have also taken similar approaches.
The only way to advertise a cryptocurrency product or service on these platforms is to get special approval from the platform. The process is famously unfair and opaque, and very few companies have been able to get their ads approved.
Although we understand the reasons behind the bans, it’s still been a big blow to our business. As a start-up, we rely on advertising to reach our target market. Here are some of the reasons targeted advertising works so well for start-ups in the crypto space:
Start-ups have a limited marketing budget, so they need to be very careful about spending their money. They can’t afford to waste money on ads that don’t reach their target market.
Targeted advertising is the most efficient way to reach potential customers. When you target your ads, you know that they’re being seen by people interested in what you have to offer. This means that you’re more likely to get a return on your investment.
Ovoro’s success depends on building a community of crypto enthusiasts. We need to reach as many people as possible who are interested in cryptocurrency. With platforms like Google and Facebook, we can target our ads to people who have searched for keywords related to crypto.
This is the best way to build a community, as it ensures that we’re reaching the people who are most interested in what we have to say. It also allows us to build relationships with potential customers from day one.
Cryptocurrency is a global phenomenon, so start-ups need to reach a global audience. Traditional advertising methods, such as TV and radio, are very expensive and don’t reach a worldwide audience.
Targeted online advertising allows start-ups to reach a global audience without spending a lot of money. With platforms like Google and Facebook, start-ups can target their ads to people in specific countries. It’s a very cost-effective way to reach many potential customers.
We’d like to take this opportunity to share some of the other struggles we are facing as a crypto start-up. Although most of these are of lesser magnitude, they are all very time-consuming and frustrating.
Banks are notoriously risk-averse, so it’s been challenging to find one that will work with us. Most banks are unwilling to work with companies in the crypto space because of regulatory uncertainty. Thankfully, FinTech startups are beginning to fill this gap with neo banking services that are more friendly to start-ups.
There’s a lot of negative press surrounding cryptocurrency. This is understandable, as there is a lot of speculation and volatility in the market. However, it makes it difficult to get people interested in what we’re doing. We need to work hard to change people’s perception of cryptocurrency and show them that it can be used for more than just speculation.
Because the crypto space is so new, many blockchain projects are facing roadblocks. We’ve had to put our project on hold multiple times because of changes in regulation or unforeseen technical difficulties. It’s been frustrating, but we’re hopeful that things will eventually start moving more smoothly.
Most start-ups operate in a grey area, but it’s especially true for crypto start-ups. We constantly have to change our plans to comply with new regulations. It’s a lot of work, but it’s essential to make sure that we operate legally.
We are always learning and evolving, and we’ll continue to face challenges as we grow. But we’re committed to our vision of making cryptocurrency more accessible to everyone.
As mentioned above, a license is now mandatory for all crypto-related businesses to operate legally. This includes advertising, so we can no longer run ads on Google or Facebook.
If we decide to move forward with the application process, the process will be very long and costly. It could take months, or even years, to get a license. And there’s no guarantee that we’ll be approved. Thus, we have been forced to take a step back and re-evaluate our options.
This small roadblock might slightly push back our launch timeline, but we are confident that we will adapt and overcome it. We are committed to bringing our app to the world and making crypto trading accessible to everyone.
We’re currently exploring other ways to reach our target market.
Despite the challenges we’re facing, we’re still optimistic about the future of Ovoro. We believe that cryptocurrency is here to stay and that the industry will eventually be regulated in a way that is fair to both businesses and consumers. In the meantime, we’ll continue to find creative ways to reach our target market and build our community.
If you want to join our community, please sign up for our beta. We’ll keep you updated on our progress and let you know when we launch!
Thank you for your continuous support!
Ovoro is the future of crypto trading, our focus is to teach people to become financially literate in a fun and simplified way.
Ovoro app let's you invest with in-game money into a variety of our investment pools. Performace of the pools reflects real world markets and you can see how your invesments would behave. Complete tasks to earn rewards and compete with your friends.
Using Ovoro app is totally free.
You can try investing wihtout a risk of losing your money. While educating yourself you might even get rewarded.
You can join our Discord or contact us at hello@ovoro.com
