Finfluencers in the PFSA’s crosshairs. The end of the “free-for-all” in the financial internet

Aleksander Orzeł, an attorney-at-law, and Mateusz Kędzior, an advocate, from the Romanowski & Partners law firm, point out in an article published in Business Insider, among other things, what mistakes investment firms collaborating with financial influencers—and the finfluencers themselves—should avoid.

In the coming months, the collaboration between finfluencers and investment firms may be scrutinized in detail by the Polish Financial Supervision Authority (PFSA), which is already clearly signaling that it recognizes issues related to the presentation of financial content online and violations of regulations governing the activities of agents.

Key risks?

• finfluencers publishing content constituting personal recommendations (risk of providing investment advice without authorization)
• misleading the audience (lack of substantive oversight by brokers over finfluencers’ content)
• performing activities reserved exclusively for tied agents (actively soliciting clients, providing information about the scope of investment services offered by an investment firm)

Violations may result in administrative and criminal liability (if the PFSA submits a crime notification, it will simultaneously make an entry on the List of Public Warnings).

Read more in the article available HERE.