London-based advertising for Wahed Invest, an Islamic investment platform, has been banned by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) due to concerns over potential offense. The ads, which ran on Transport for London (TfL) services in September and October, featured images of burning US dollar and euro banknotes.
The ASA received 75 complaints about the advertisements. The complaints centered around the depicted burning of national currencies. Crucially, the ASA stated that the imagery, while possibly interpreted by some as a visual metaphor, was likely to cause offense to viewers, particularly those from the US or Eurozone, who would perceive their national currencies as culturally significant.
Wahed Invest defended the ads, arguing that the burning banknotes represented the devaluation of money due to inflation. The company contended that the imagery was a common trope in various media, and that the use of "Riba" (Arabic for excess, typically used to describe the prohibition of interest under Islamic law) was intended to convey the message that interest-bearing financial systems are exploitative.
However, the ASA's ruling found the ads likely to cause serious offense due to the explicit burning of currency symbols, a visual element deemed too provocative, even if not directed at a specific group.
Transport for London (TfL) had paused the ads pending the ASA investigation. The ASA ruling, therefore, reinforces its stance against the material. Wahed and TfL have not yet publicly responded to the decision.
