Money talk is one of the biggest lanes in the creator economy, and regulators around the world have decided it needs guardrails. According to INTHEBLACK‘s Cameron Cooper, financial watchdogs from Asia, North America, Europe, the UK, South America and the Middle East are working together to rein in “finfluencers” who hand out investment advice on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube without a license. In the past year, Cooper reports, the effort has led to arrests and criminal cases, cease-and-desist letters and 650 requests to take posts down.

A coordinated crackdown

In April 2026, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) took part in a second Global Week of Action Against Unlawful Finfluencers alongside regulators from 16 other regions, including Hong Kong, India, Singapore and New Zealand. Afterward, ASIC warned four influencers suspected of giving unlicensed advice or making misleading claims, such as promises of guaranteed returns.

ASIC commissioner Alan Kirkland told INTHEBLACK that people can pick up useful information on social media, “but we have got really clear laws in Australia saying that if you are giving financial advice, you have got to be appropriately licensed or authorised.” He sees the international teamwork as a possible game changer, since single regulators have struggled to go after creators based in other countries. “The message is intended to be: wherever you may be in the world, you cannot escape the law,” Kirkland said.

The audience is young. ASIC’s own research found that 63 percent of Gen Z Australians trust social media for financial information, and more than half say they somewhat or completely trust what finfluencers tell them.

Followers feel smarter than they are

A new South Korean report puts numbers on the worry. As Herald Business‘s Park Hye-rim reports, the Korea Institute of Finance cited a survey from the US Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) finding that 68 percent of people who follow finfluencers tend to base investment decisions on their recommendations. YouTube was the most popular platform among those followers, used by 77 percent.

Here’s the catch. Sixty-six percent of finfluencer followers rated their own financial knowledge as high, compared with 52 percent of non-followers. On an actual multiple-choice test, though, the followers scored 41 percent, below the 47 percent scored by people who don’t follow them.

The report also noted that South Korea’s current rules can miss creators who work independently and don’t take money directly from investors, because their income comes from ads, sponsorships and platform revenue instead. The institute suggested clearer guidance on what finfluencers can do and required disclosure of conflicts of interest like paid deals.

Education versus advice

The creators who want to stay on the right side of the line keep coming back to one distinction. Singapore-based financial blogger Dawn Cher, who has about 34,000 followers, told INTHEBLACK she avoids telling her audience what to buy or sell and focuses on teaching them so they can make their own choices. “You have to be educating people how to be smarter about their finances without giving specific financial advice,” she said. Singapore’s regulator has ruled that creators giving financial advice fall under its Financial Advisers Act.

India is having the same conversation. According to afaqs!‘s Benita Chacko, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Board of India, Tuhin Kanta Pandey, recently warned investors against leaning on finfluencers, anonymous tips and exaggerated return claims. At the outlet’s BankFin 360 conference, financial creator Abhishek Garg said he asks three questions before promoting anything: whether he’d use it or recommend it to family, whether it could hurt someone financially, and whether it adds real value. He also stays away from unregulated offerings like unauthorized forex trading platforms. “Ultimately, there’s a difference between having followers and having influence,” Garg said.

Not everyone sees finfluencers as a problem to stamp out. Dr Akshaya Kamalnath of Australian National University Law School told INTHEBLACK that regulation should go after the dark side of the trend without killing its upside, arguing that finfluencers can bring first-time investors into the markets.

The takeaway

For anyone building a business on social media, finance is the clearest preview of where creator regulation is going: licenses for advice, disclosure of paid deals and regulators who now share notes across borders. Creators in other niches who make health, money or earnings claims should pay attention, because the rule finfluencers are learning applies broadly. Teaching your audience is welcome, but telling them what to do with their money, or hiding who paid you, is starting to carry real legal risk.