The crypto industry is currently full of famous people, both from the world of sports, cinema and the Internet. They are willing to engage in various types of projects and the promotion of digital currencies. However, should their opinions be known to millions of people? Definitely not in every case. The cryptocurrency market requires great caution, as well as knowledge of how to invest funds safely.

Popularity does not always go hand in hand with thorough knowledge of digital assets. Therefore, you should approach the advice and products promoted by people with large reach with caution. The information they spread can often harm ordinary users and build black PR for the entire cryptocurrency industry.

Celebrities and promoting famous brands

It may seem that the promotion of well-known brands by celebrities is a novelty in the world of marketing and is often associated only with the development of social media. In fact, the strategy of advertising a brand with the help of famous faces dates back to the 19th century. Already at that time, popular theater actors, writers, artists and even members of the royal family took part in promoting various types of products and services. Advertisements with their participation appeared in the press, on posters and postcards.

As you can see for many years in the minds of consumers, there is a strong belief that if something is promoted by a famous person, it must be worth buying. right? Not always! Nevertheless, as technology advances, celebrities remain a key element in marketing strategies, influencing purchasing decisions and consumer preferences. Certainly, social media and influencers have taken this practice to a higher level. Nowadays, it is difficult to find a person who does not use social media and does not follow their favorite stars from the world of sports, the silver screen or the Internet there.

There is no doubt that brands are constantly competing with each other and are using the advancement of technology to expand their activities. That’s why many high-profile companies are quickly getting involved in the Metaverse to connect with consumers interested in the development of virtual worlds. How does this relate to celebrities? This is perfectly illustrated by the example of Snoop Dogg, who purchased a virtual property in Metaverse Sandbox and in a short time there were many people ready to pay a huge sum to virtually live next to a famous rapper.

Celebrities and promoting cryptocurrencies

As you already know, the cryptocurrency industry is developing at a rapid pace and attracts more and more users, including popular ones. As with other products, celebrities also began to engage in the promotion of cryptocurrencies. Considering how many “ordinary” users have tried to make a quick profit in this field of finance, the support provided by famous people does not seem so strange anymore. In a relatively new environment, there are many promising investment options. However, it seems that there are two types of famous people involved in disseminating information about the virtual currency. Some of them are actually involved in the cryptocurrency community, while others are only looking for financial benefits and often promote scam projects with their name.

How long have celebrities or influencers been advertising cryptocurrencies? This trend seems to have been going on for a decade. The first known case was comedian Drew Carey, who expressed his support for cryptocurrencies in 2013. He is believed to have been one of the earliest users of bitcoin and often promotes its use and innovation through Twitter posts, among other things.

Since 2013, more and more famous people have penetrated the world of cryptocurrencies. It is not surprising that the greatest interest of the stars was caused by bitcoin, which began to be promoted as a form of payment. In this way, cryptocurrencies entered the music and art industries, among others. The aforementioned Snoop Dogg, a famous American rapper and Bjork, an Icelandic music artist, joined this trend by accepting bitcoin as a form of payment for the purchase of their albums.

Another interesting example is Kanye West, who publicly expressed his belief that the bitcoin community has the potential to contribute to the true emancipation of humanity. This illustrates how some people with high social influence see the value and importance of blockchain and cryptocurrency technologies beyond the financial aspects.

Of course, these examples do not exhaust the topic of cryptocurrency promotion by famous people. They were promoted by many celebrities, such as Reese Witherspoon, Matt Damon, Paris Hilton, Ellen Degeneres or Mila Kunis and many other stars. Some participated in advertisements for cryptocurrency exchanges or apps that facilitate their trading, while others, possibly for a hefty fee, expressed their favorable opinions about cryptocurrencies on their social media.

It is also worth mentioning that the promotion of cryptocurrencies is doing very well in the world of combat sports. Many federations and players establish cooperation with the creators of the largest cryptocurrency projects. An interesting example is the partnership between the UFC and Crypto.com, where fighters can receive an additional bonus in bitcoin. This is an interesting step towards integrating cryptocurrencies with large sports organizations. This partnership can also contribute to building greater awareness and acceptance of cryptocurrencies in society, as UFC is a huge and international sports brand with a large following and viewership around the world.

Celebrities and scam

Now the question should finally be answered, should we be afraid of the presence of celebrities in the world of cryptocurrencies?

More than ever, celebrities have a social and ethical responsibility to consumers. This became obvious even before the era when the concept of “cryptocurrency” became popular among celebrities. Some time ago, the world learned how much power social media influencers have when it comes to influencing consumer choices. The problem is that they do not often have in mind only financial benefits and building even greater reach, not the well-being of their fans.

A big problem in promoting cryptocurrency projects by celebrities is that they charge for advertising, but either do not have enough knowledge or neglect to disclose all relevant facts to consumers and investors. This, in turn, may influence their investment decisions or the choice of specific (sometimes harmful) services.

With the popularity of this type of advertising, there have been cases where celebrities have not disclosed that they are being paid for their endorsements. This may lead consumers to mistakenly believe that such an investment is trustworthy and safe.

Therefore, regulators such as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) intervened by imposing fines on celebrities for illegally promoting cryptocurrency projects. Such actions were aimed at protecting the fairness and transparency of the financial market and protecting investors from potential fraud and disinformation.

The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection also became interested in the subject of cryptocurrency scams. UOKiK warns against advertisements in which celebrities encourage investment in cryptocurrencies. This is to protect consumers from potential scammers and misinformation. This is a justified action, because often in social media we can meet passwords about earning millions without leaving home. Young users who do not have any investment experience are given information on this type of information.

Examples of scams “offered” by famous people

Concerns about cryptocurrency scams and celebrity disinformation should, of course, be backed up with examples.

One of them is the situation from 2018, when the Securities and Exchange Commission fined the music producer DJ Khalid and the famous boxer Floyd Mayweather for promoting Centra Tech. Centra Tech founders Robert Farka, Sohrab Sharma and Raymond Trapani pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit securities fraud and electronic fraud in connection with their cryptocurrency offering.

In turn, in 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced that one of the most famous celebrities, Kim Kardashian, agreed to pay $ 1.26 million as a result of the settlement. The reason was that she promoted the EthereumMax token on social media in front of millions of followers. At the same time, however, she chose not to disclose the fact that she received a fee of $ 250,000 for advertising.

There are also cases in which celebrities do not hide their remuneration for advertising cryptocurrencies, and cheat about how much you can earn on them. On the Internet, we can more and more often encounter slogans such as: a well-known influencer / youtuber promised huge money for investing in cryptocurrencies. This is perfectly illustrated by the example of Polish influencer Marta Rentel, also known as Marti Renti. She boasted that she became a millionaire by selling virtual love in the form of NFT. However, shortly after this declaration, she decided to plead guilty to fraud and misleading the public. It turned out that she made much less than a million, and she also does not know very well how NFT works.