Nirmala Sitharaman, India’s finance minister, spoke on the subject of financial influencers on Sunday and emphasised the risks associated with Ponzi apps that purport to provide financial assistance. Sitharaman said in her speech that there isn’t currently a plan to regulate “fin-influencers,” but that it’s important to exercise prudence. “If three or four people are giving us very objective, good advice, seven out of ten others are probably motivated by other factors,” she advised.
Sithraman also expressed concerns about the increasing number of Ponzi apps that are offering financial solutions in India and warned citizens to be wary of these schemes. “There are also apps which are coming out and reaching out to people saying, ‘We can do this. We can do that. Your money will fetch you this much.’ Many of whom are Ponzi,” she noted. The Finance Ministry is reportedly working with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to clamp down on fraudulent apps and protect citizens from financial scams.
The ministry is “clamping down on them like never before so that we don’t get that Ponzi apps taking away hard-earned money,” Sitharaman said. Hence, while social and fin-influencers are out there, each individual must have a strong sense of caution, the finance minister alarmed. Giving pointers on what to do, Sitharaman said Indian citizens should double-check, counter-check and talk to other people. She warned individuals to not go as a flock into something without doing due diligence. “We have to be careful. It’s our hard-worked money. You’ve earned it. You save it. You protect it,” Sithraman said.
On April 23, while attending an event in Bengaluru, Karnataka, the finance minister made these remarks. She also discussed the war between Ukraine and Russia and its effects on the world there, as well as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recognition of states and India’s federal structure.
Financial influencers are a hot topic in India due to the growth of social media and the expanding impact of online personalities.