FTC Disclosure

Every time a website recommends a crypto lending platform and earns a commission for doing so, the FTC wants you to know about it. The FTC's endorsement and testimonial guidelines require publishers to disclose any "material connection" — meaning money, free products, or any other compensation — that could influence what they say about a product.

That disclosure has to be clear and conspicuous. Buried in a footer doesn't cut it. Neither does a vague "partnerships may exist" buried in a Terms of Service page nobody reads.

How It Works

The FTC's authority here comes from Section 5 of the FTC Act, which prohibits unfair or deceptive acts in commerce. Their Endorsement Guides — most recently updated in 2023 — spell out exactly what "clear and conspicuous" means in practice.

In practice: if a crypto lending review site earns a referral fee every time a reader signs up for a platform, that relationship must be disclosed at the top of the review — not after the call to action, not in a separate disclosures page. The disclosure has to appear where the reader will actually see it before they act.

The fine structure matters. The FTC can pursue civil penalties up to $51,744 per violation — and each non-compliant post, video, or social media endorsement can count as a separate violation. A site running 40 undisclosed affiliate reviews isn't looking at one fine.

Why It Matters

For borrowers and depositors, FTC disclosure is a signal about whether the information you're reading is independent analysis or paid promotion. A platform review that earns $200 per signup has a structural incentive to downplay risk. You deserve to know that before you wire funds.

What to Watch

The most common mistake is treating disclosure as a legal checkbox rather than a communication act. Phrases like "this post contains affiliate links" technically say something — but if a reader has to know what an affiliate link is to understand the conflict, the disclosure isn't doing its job. The FTC's standard is whether an ordinary reader would understand the relationship. Plain language beats legalese every time.