Google to ban ads on cryptocurrencies, related products

Alphabet Inc’s (GOOGL.O) Google said on Wednesday it will ban advertisements for cryptocurrencies and related content starting in June.

In 2017, popular cryptocurrency Bitcoin searches dominated Google’s most searched terms and questions for the year.

Under the new policy, the company will ban ads for unregulated or speculative financial products like binary options, cryptocurrency and financial spread betting among others.

In a separate blog post, Google said it took down 3.2 billion ads that violated its advertising policies in 2017, nearly double the number of ads it removed in 2016.

“Improving the ads experience across the web, whether that’s removing harmful ads or intrusive ads, will continue to be a top priority for us,” Scott Spencer, director of sustainable ads, said.

In January, Facebook Inc (FB.O) said it will ban ads promoting financial products and services tied to cryptocurrencies and initial coin offerings.

The policy will be implemented across its platforms, including Facebook, Audience Network and Instagram, the company said.