Some S’poreans say they’re wary of finfluencers after 8 complaints have been made this year

SINGAPORE: There have been eight complaints so far this year against “finfluencers”, as financial influencers are at times called, according to Singapore’s central Bank, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). This is more than the average of five complaints per year against them over the past five years.

CNA reported Alvin Tan, a board member of MAS and Minister of State for Trade and Industry, as saying in Parliament on April 8 (Tuesday) that the majority of the eight complaints had been made because two such “finfluencers” put up posts about why they were withdrawing money from a particular investment platform.

Mr Tan was answering questions from Members of Parliament in connection with Chocolate Finance, which made the news on March 10 after it announced it was suspending instant withdrawals. Workers’ Party MP He Ting Ru (Sengkang) asked whether MAS is reviewing safeguards to ensure that non-licensed individuals do not provide financial advice. The MP also asked whether there has been an increase in complaints against non-licensed individuals and financial influencers, given the incident with Chocolate Finance.

The company’s decision to halt instant withdrawals is reportedly the result of two finfluencers’ saying they were withdrawing their funds from the platform.

Read related: Chocolate Finance announces 3- to 6-day withdrawal timeline after suspending instant withdrawals, MAS confirms compliance

On March 9, the personal finance influencer Seth Wee posted a video on YouTube explaining why he was withdrawing everything from Chocolate Finance.

Mr Tan, who said that MAS has already responded to the eight complaints lodged against finance influencers, said that they need to offer advice “responsibly and must not veer into providing financial advice, which is a regulated activity”.

He added that people who use financial products need to understand their features fully, including the risks involved, before committing to an investment. If they are unclear on a product’s suitability, they should seek professional financial advice.

Some netizens commenting on reports about complaints lodged against finfluencers have expressed scepticism about them.

“Do you see Warren Buffett doing YouTube videos on how and what to invest?… If they are successful, they’ll use the time to make more money. Not waste time teaching others to make money,” wrote one.

“They run it like a business to earn clicks for views. Regardless of their know-how in financial products and product limitations. No reason for this influencer to be excluded from the FA (Financial Advisers) Act. They need to be licensed, regulated and taken to task,” another said.

A commenter agreed, writing, “Yep, should regulate when it comes to enticing others into financial schemes.”

/TISG

Read also: Singapore calls for regulation of ‘finfluencers’ as MAS pushes for licensing of social media financial advisors