Is advice the new tobacco?

ifa

Based on an ASIC survey from March this year, 63 per cent of Gen Z Australians use social media for financial guidance – and 56 per cent either “somewhat” or “completely” trust information from these channels. At the time, ASIC commissioner Alan Kirkland cautioned younger investors against relying on social media for financial decision-making, noting that the information one typically gets from these sources is “shaped by algorithms that are designed to drive clicks and views rather than providing accurate information.” He added: “Financial information on social media and accessed through AI tools can be incomplete, promotional or misleading. Relying on it alone increases the risk of making a decision you may later regret.”  

Last Friday, though, Kirkland was a little more conciliatory about the prospect; he told members of the Senate Economics Legislation Committee that ASIC needed to “acknowledge the reality” of social media’s role in financial education for younger people. “Of course [they’re] turning to social media for information about financial topics, just as they do for a range of other topics. And of course they’re turning to [AI], too. As a regulator with a role in financial education and literacy, we have to acknowledge that,” he said.

The rest of this article can be found at ifa.com.au.