Digital Influence And Investor Harm: Rethinking Finfluencer Regulation In India
- IJLLR Journal
- May 12
- 1 min read
Rishab Saraogi & Sulagna Mohanti, Amity University, Kolkata
"Law must be stable and yet it cannot stand still."— Roscoe Pound
ABSTRACT
This article explores the emergence of financial influencers (“finfluencers”) in India and assesses if the current Indian securities-law structure sufficiently safeguards retail investors, especially in the high-risk context of equity derivatives and app-based trading. The paper contends that India has progressed past regulatory inaction: SEBI has released consultation documents, circulars, directives on disclosures, public warnings, and enforcement orders regarding unlicensed digital investment advice. However, the current framework continues to be structurally inadequate as it depends significantly on outdated classifications like “investment adviser” and “research analyst,” while current finfluencer behavior is frequently public-facing, multi-platform, compensated, algorithmically enhanced, and referred to as “education.” Employing a doctrinal and policy approach, the article examines the SEBI Act of 1992, the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act of 1956, the SEBI Investment Advisers Regulations, the SEBI Research Analysts Regulations, the PFUTP framework, SEBI’s finfluencer circulars and directives, the Information Technology Act of 2000, and comparative resources from the United Kingdom, United States, European Union, and Singapore. It concludes that India ought to implement a functional framework for digital investment impact that safeguards authentic financial literacy while enforcing stricter responsibilities on compensated advice, derivatives materials, performance assertions, affiliate/referral economics, and platform collaboration.
Keywords: Finfluencers; SEBI; retail investor safeguarding; online investment guidance; research analysts; investment consultants; PFUTP; futures and options; platform accountability; securities oversight.
