FinTok: How TikTok is changing financial literacy in Canada - Interview with CTV News
It’s been a tough year financially, with a 40-year-high inflation rate, climbing housing prices and a sharp rise in the cost of living. More Canadians are seeking financial advice on how to make the most of their money, and Canada’s younger generations have turned to an unlikely yet booming source for the answers to their problems.
Financial TikTok – or FinTok – has become one of the most popular trends on the platform that originally attracted users from around the world with dancing videos, and is emerging as a go-to resource for Gen Z and millennial audiences looking to learn how to invest, budget or even spend more wisely.
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BUT TREAD CAREFULLY, EXPERTS SAY
Too much trust in FinTok is concerning, according to Caval Olson-Lepage, a certified financial planner with Saskatchewan-based agency Affinity Wealth Management.
“We have to view all financial advice that we are receiving with caution – especially if that advice is coming from individuals who do not have the educational background or licensing to provide that advice, regardless of the platform it is presented on,” she told CTVNews.ca in an email on Wednesday.
Olson-Lepage pointed out that after spending some time on FinTok herself, she noticed highly specific investment recommendations with “no mention of the potential risk of investing in these investments, such as a potential financial loss.”
Viewers may not necessarily understand the general nature of the advice they receive, which isn’t always applicable to one’s personal financial situation, she said.
“There is a reason why every financial ad on TV or social media by a professional comes with a warning – it is to protect the consumer and direct them to seek an expert opinion on whether that product would be a fit for them,” she said.
“Those FinTok videos do not come with that warning.”