Preying on Desperation: When False Hope Targets Our Hurting Neighbors

Friends, as an IT guy, I spend my days fixing technical problems, but some issues hit a lot harder than a crashed server. This story, while it might seem like just another business headline, reveals a deep crack in how we’re treating our most vulnerable. It’s about how some folks, whether they mean to or not, are preying on the very real struggles of everyday people.

• A major cryptocurrency company, Coinbase, ran advertising campaigns suggesting its services could be a solution to the ongoing, painful cost of living crisis, showing homes falling apart and food prices soaring.
• The UK’s advertising watchdog (ASA) banned these ads, calling them “irresponsible” for trivializing the significant risks associated with cryptocurrency investments.
• Despite warnings from financial authorities that these are high-risk products where people could “lose all of their money,” these ads failed to include adequate risk disclosures, directly targeting those already struggling with financial hardship.

This isn’t just about bad advertising; it’s a moral failing we cannot ignore. When people are watching their grocery bills climb, their homes fall into disrepair, and their jobs disappear – as those ads actually depicted – they are desperate for solutions. To then offer a high-risk, largely unregulated investment as an easy way out is profoundly troubling. It’s like offering a drowning man a lead weight. We, as a society, are called to look out for the “least of these,” to protect the vulnerable, not to stand by while they’re lured into schemes that could take their last penny. This isn’t happening in some faraway land; this is happening right here, in our own backyards, affecting our neighbors, our friends, and our communities. We have a responsibility to address the root causes of this desperation and to hold accountable those who would exploit it.

This story was analyzed for Christ P2P. You can read the original reporting here: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/jan/28/coinbase-adverts-banned-uk-crypto