ASA ruling on asset broker

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has ruled that Sourced Consultancy Ltd t/a Oak & Mason has breached the CAP code by failing to make clear the risk of investments, or inform consumers that they are variable, in their advertisement. 

A paid-for Meta ad for Oak and Mason featured the text, “Oak & Mason specialises in graded Royal Mint coins – certified, secure and historically proven. Download our Gold Investment Guide and discover how these exceptional assets can protect and grow your wealth.” along with “How Investors Are Preserving Wealth with Royal Mint Gold Coins.” 

ASA challenged whether the ad was misleading as it did not make clear the risks of investments and whether it breached the code as it did not make clear the value of investments was variable. In their response, Sourced Consultancy Ltd t/a Oak and Mason stated that an external agency was used to create the ad and that the ad was paused once they had learned that it did not include the required risk warnings. 

ASA upheld the complaint as the material information omitted was required for consumers to make an informed decision. The product was advertised as an investment product and was therefore being treated as one. Without the risk warning and in referring to past performance, a risk warning needed to be prominently displayed.