Paper Details

The rise of social media financial influencers ("Finfluencers") coincides with a surge in young retail investor participation in India. This study empirically investigates the extent and nature of Finfluencer impact on the investment decisions, risk perception, and behavior of Indian investors aged 18-35. A quantitative, survey-based approach was adopted. A structured questionnaire measuring demographic details, social media usage for financial information, exposure to Finfluencers, perceived credibility of Finfluencers, information adoption, self-assessed risk tolerance, and investment behavior (trading frequency, asset allocation) was distributed online, yielding 600 valid responses from young retail investors across India. The data was analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics (Version 28). Key analyses included descriptive statistics, Cronbach's Alpha for scale reliability, Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) to validate constructs (credibility, adoption), correlation analysis, t-tests/ANOVA to compare groups based on exposure levels, and Multiple Linear Regression to predict investment behavior. SPSS analysis indicated high exposure to Finfluencer content (75% consume daily/weekly). EFA confirmed distinct factors for Perceived Credibility (Expertise, Trustworthiness) and Information Adoption. Perceived Credibility showed a strong positive correlation with Information Adoption (r=0.68, p<0.001). Multiple regression revealed that Information Adoption (β=0.45, p<0.001) and Exposure Frequency (β=0.25, p<0.01) were significant positive predictors of higher trading frequency. Furthermore, Perceived Credibility significantly predicted higher self-assessed Risk Tolerance (β=0.30, p<0.001), even after controlling for income and experience. Finfluencers demonstrably impact the trading frequency and risk tolerance of young Indian investors, driven significantly by perceived credibility. This highlights a potent behavioral channel influencing market dynamics. The findings carry significant implications for investor education, SEBI's regulatory framework concerning financial advice dissemination on social media, and the ethical responsibilities of influencers and platforms. It suggests a need for enhanced digital financial literacy programs specifically addressing the evaluation of online financial content.

Finfluencers, Social Media, Retail Investors, Behavioral Finance, Investment Decisions, Risk Tolerance, SPSS, India.