MENACE OF FINFLUENCERS

HOW SELF-PROCLAIMED STOCK MARKET GURUS EXPLOIT REGULATOR SEBI'S LIMITATIONS AND LOOPHOLES TO ATTRACT GULLIBLE INVESTORS.

- Rajiv Ranjan Singh

SPOUT INVESTMENT ADVICE on social media in the name of ‘technical tools’. Garner followers through marketing hocus-pocus. Claim to give highly accurate tips and brag about the crores you made in the ‘market’ through your strategies. Et voila!

With all that, you can tout yourself as a stock market or financial guru, charge followers for webinars, workshops and courses bundled with exclusive tips to tackle the market daily. You can make it mandatory for ‘followers’ to subscribe to specific investment platforms, or buy software and thirdparty services to earn commission. You can also endorse brands in videos and get paid for promoting products — without any disclosure.

This is the typical modus operandi of India’s self-proclaimed financial gurus, who run illicit investment advisory services online. The Internet is a confusing space already where glass glitters more than diamond because it has got more to prove. GenNext retail investors take more lessons from their WhatsApp and Telegram groups, YouTube channels and Twitter feeds managed by finfluencers than any other medium. While some information is free, most comes at a heavy price. The real trap is in “paid” privileges (tips), where online babas take advantage of the gullible. Once money is exchanged, customers have no recourse if wisdom fails to deliver. Why blame them, when the market is inherently risky, after all!

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