Australians shun social media and turn to market research and financial advisers for investment information and education, a new survey from HSBC Australia reveals.
The annual “Investor Insights Survey”, which canvassed more than 1,000 investors aged 18 years and over, showed that 34% of investors go to advisers for financial information and 30% like to read market research and analyst reports. These preferences are up from 26% and 21%, respectively, from 2024.
Only a minority of investors tune into social media platforms such as YouTube, Facebook and Instagram for investment education.
Conversely, a 2024 Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) survey found that young Australians are increasingly relying on social media for financial advice, which puts them at risk of investment scams.
Young Australians aged 18-34 are twice as likely to source financial advice from social media than those aged 35-49.
Of the 51% of those aged 18-34 who say they have sourced financial advice relating to retirement or superannuation, ASFA found that social media was the second-most common (15%) source of advice, after friends and family (36%).
"Most scams begin through interactions over platforms like Reddit, TikTok, and X. Young people's personal trust in social media advice, combined with an increased likelihood to seek advice over social media, makes them particularly vulnerable to cybercrime and exploitation that threatens their superannuation balances and consequently a comfortable retirement," ASFA Chief Executive Mary Delahunty said.
HSBC Australia Head of Investments Donahue D'Souza said HSBC's results indicate investors are turning towards 'trusted' sources of information, potentially to assist them in taking a holistic view of their finances.
The HSBC survey also found that Australian investors now think they need more money to start investing compared to last year.
Younger Australians believe they need more than $20,000 to start investing. They are also monitoring their investments more frequently compared to last year from 67% to 76%.
Many save for an emergency fund (40%), holiday (25%), house deposit (22%), pass onto the next generation (21%) and pay for children's expenses (19%), reported Financial Standard.