Crypto glossary
Finfluencer
A finfluencer is a social media personality who shares financial content, including crypto picks, often with disclosure duties when the promotion is paid.
Finfluencers publish videos, posts and live streams about investing on platforms such as YouTube, TikTok, Instagram and X. In crypto they range from educators explaining concepts to accounts that promote tokens, exchanges and trading courses. Their reach can rival that of traditional media, and studies by regulators have found that many young investors rely on them as a main source of information.
Regulators increasingly treat paid finfluencer content as advertising. In the US, the SEC fined a celebrity in 2022 for promoting a crypto token without disclosing that she had been paid, and the FTC requires clear disclosure of material connections. In Spain, the CNMV's crypto advertising circular covers paid influencer promotions, and a 2024 decree regulates influencers with large audiences under audiovisual law. In the UK, unauthorised finfluencers who promote financial products can face criminal charges.
Undisclosed payments, affiliate links and token allocations create conflicts of interest. Followers often cannot tell when enthusiasm has been bought, and several pump-and-dump schemes have relied on influencer posts.
Example
A TikTok account with a million followers posts about a new token without mentioning that the project paid for the video. After complaints, the regulator opens an investigation into the undisclosed promotion.
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