The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the UK's financial regulator, has taken an unconventional approach to promote its cryptocurrency marketing regulations by transforming them into pixelated Wild West-style cartoons, intending to educate and inspire investors.
On December 13, a one-minute animation resembling a video game emerged on the FCA website as an MP4 file. This animation, resembling a Wild West-themed video game, does not appear to be part of any press release. It stands alone on the publication page without any caption or accompanying explanation.
The cartoon aims to elucidate how to discern if a cryptocurrency company adheres to the FCA's marketing guidelines. These rules stipulate that crypto promotions cannot offer freebies or referral incentives and must prominently highlight the potential risks of financial loss in cryptocurrency investments. The animated protagonist, sporting a cowboy hat, navigates through a Wild West landscape while the narrator outlines these rules. In the animation, cryptocurrencies take the form of gold coins dropping into a well in front of investor cowboys. Meanwhile, a "Wanted" poster featuring a green snake's face is displayed by the protagonist upon hearing the narrator's warnings about companies not complying with the FCA's marketing regulations. Interestingly, the snake also sports a tiny hat.
The FCA introduced the new regulations on June 8 and has since issued numerous warnings and reminders. They even extended the technical deadline from October 8 to January 8, 2024. Despite these efforts, some market participants, like Marinade Finance, the largest decentralized finance protocol operating on the Solana blockchain, have announced their withdrawal from the UK in reaction to the regulations.
