SFC joins global regulatory effort again to combat unlawful activities of finfluencers

On April 24, 2026, the Securities and Futures Commission ("SFC") joined forces with securities regulators across the globe to tackle the unlawful activities of financial influencers (finfluencers). Recognising that unlawful activities of finfluencers are a global phenomenon, members of the International Organization of Securities Commissions ("IOSCO") participating in the Global Week of Action Against Unlawful Finfluencers during the week of 20 April 2026 were almost twice as many as last year when the initiative was first launched. A total of 17 IOSCO members, including the SFC, joined this year’s regulatory initiative. This initiative aims at disrupting the unlawful activities of finfluencers. It involves regulators undertaking regulatory measures ranging from enforcement and supervisory actions to investor education and awareness programmes. Ms Julia Leung, the SFC’s Chief Executive Officer and Chair of the IOSCO Asia-Pacific Regional Committee, said: With financial promotions becoming increasingly prevalent on social media, it is vital for regulators around the world to work together to protect investing public from unlawful financial promotions, and foster a fair online environment. The SFC is committed to supporting this global initiative as part of our campaign to combat online scams that often transcend jurisdictional boundaries.

SFC’s enforcement actions

In the past year, the SFC made progress in tackling unlawful activities of finfluencers through robust enforcement actions and cooperation with social media platforms in taking down suspicious posts and profiles engaged in unlicensed activities. The outcomes of the SFC’s actions included securing a custodial sentence against a finfluencer who was criminally convicted for providing paid investment advice on a social medial chat group without licence; issuing a compliance advice letter to a finfluencer in connection with unlicensed promotion of overseas virtual asset trading platforms to the Hong Kong public; submitting 12 reports concerning 33 suspicious posts or accounts to major social media platforms since July 2025 with over 90% of these reported posts or accounts being promptly removed by respective platforms; and leveraging social media platforms to combat unlawful activities of finfluencers through joint, local engagement with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and other authorities in Hong Kong under Anti-Scam Consumer Protection Charter 3.0, as well as regional engagement through the SFC’s leadership role in the IOSCO Asia-Pacific Regional Committee Scams Working Group.

Proactive surveillance

The SFC has been proactive in strengthening its capability in detecting social media financial scams through its in-house artificial intelligence-powered social media monitoring system ("SENSOR") launched in the third quarter of 2025. This system leverages AI and natural language processing technologies to monitor social media platforms for, among other red flags, unlawful promotion of financial products by finfluencers.

Investor education

The SFC combats unlawful activities of finfluencers with preventative measures focusing on investor education. Notably, the SFC worked closely with the Hong Kong Police Force and other regulatory authorities to crack down on misconduct, including fraudulent schemes promoted by finfluencers, through sharing intelligence and emerging trends of deceptive practices. The SFC also joined hands with other agencies in enhancing public awareness of scams with its coordinated outreach activities extending to diverse community groups. For example, in March 2026, the SFC partnered with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and the Chinese Banking Association of Hong Kong to host a fraud prevention and investment education session for Mainland-based university students in Hong Kong, as well as sharing anti-scam tips at a Consumer Council event for senior citizens.

Regulatory Context and Participating Jurisdictions

Finfluencers are social media personalities who use their platforms to promote financial products and share insights and advice with their followers. They are not regulated in Hong Kong. While many are acting legitimately and not breaking any laws, some may be touting financial products or services illegally through online videos and posts and without authorisation, where they use the pretence of a lavish lifestyle, often falsely, to promote success. These individuals may not be licensed by the SFC to give advice on securities and futures contracts to investors in Hong Kong. IOSCO is a global body of securities regulators that develops and promotes adherence to internationally recognised standards for securities regulation. Its members oversee more than 95% of the world’s securities markets across over 130 jurisdictions. Other IOSCO members participating in the Global Week in 2026 are as follows, demonstrating a broad and global commitment to addressing unlawful financial promotions: Australian Securities and Investments Commission, Australia; Financial Services and Markets Authority, Belgium; Comissão de Valores Mobiliários, Brazil; Autorité des marchés financiers, Quebec, Canada; British Columbia Securities Commission, Canada; Ontario Securities Commission, Canada; Danish Financial Supervisory Authority, Denmark; Securities and Exchange Board of India, India; Central Bank of Ireland, Ireland; Financial Markets Authority, New Zealand; Finanstilsynet, Norway; Qatar Financial Centre Regulatory Authority, Qatar; Qatar Financial Markets Authority, Qatar; Monetary Authority of Singapore, Singapore; Capital Markets Authority, United Arab Emirates; Financial Conduct Authority, United Kingdom.