In the wake of the social media-induced GameStop stock buying frenzy earlier this year, more attention has been placed on the growing trend of online ‘pump and dump’ activity, with Australia’s corporate regulator even stepping in to say it might amount to market manipulation.
To address this, MarketLit co-founders Julia Maguire and Lelde Smits have created a social media investment conference which will see global social media experts, financial advisors, educators and regulators discuss the future of the digital economy.
To be live-streamed on 10 December, MarketLit hopes to address the amplification and acceleration of investment trends via social media, assessing the opportunities to investors as well as the risks that may require tightened regulation.
The event follows on from the inaugural MarketLit event in July, which was a millennial and Gen Z investment conference that focused on emerging investors and their environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) initiatives.
It was created on the back of ASX’s most recent investor trend report, which shows that women, millennials and Gen Z investors are flooding the market and overwhelmingly seeking to invest sustainability. For the second MarketLit, The Capital Network is turning its focus to social media.
Speakers at MarketLit include global social media experts like LinkedIn’s Benedict Kingsmill, MP Andrew Bragg, the ABC’s Lisa Millar and Telstra head of investor relations Nathan Burley.
MarketLit host and The Capital Network co-founder Lelde Smits said the not-for-profit event was created to advance market and media literacy while exploring the future of the digital economy in the investment world.
“We have compiled established speakers across a range of critical issues to ensure diverse and inclusive insights and advance the conversation about responsibility and regulation across social media and the investment landscape,” said Smits, who was a finalist in the 2021 Sydney Young Entrepreneur Awards.
“I have been deeply honoured to personally interview each speaker and am excited to put a spotlight on their voice, views and vision for the future.
“These experienced industry professionals, leaders and innovators are operating at the top of their game, collectively with millions and millions of followers across their social media platforms, and we are all united in our passion to create a world in which technology can help, not hinder, our collective evolution.”
The event is geared toward younger investors who are increasingly turning to social media as an important resource when it comes to researching potential moves on the market.
The Brunswick Digital Investor Survey found that investors often go to social media before making investment decisions, with LinkedIn the leading platform for investor research, followed by Twitter, YouTube and Facebook.
That survey also found that 57 per cent of investors use digital sources as alternatives to traditional media, and 50 per cent specifically use digital sources to hear from CEOs and the C-suite.
The Australia Institute’s Centre for Responsible Technology research fellow Jordan Guiao said he was excited to speak at MarketLit about the importance of financial literacy in the digital age.
“The Australia Institute’s Centre for Responsible Technology is happy to participate in MarketLit as we believe, technology and digital companies now impact many industries, including the financial and investment industry, and it’s really important that we make sure the online environment is safe, competitive and as accurate as possible,” Guiao said.
“The online environment gives the opportunity to make the industry more dynamic, but there are also some abuses that clearly need to be regulated.
“With emerging financial products like crypto and NFTs, we need to get a handle on creating rules and best practices so that governance is up to scratch for these new products. That’s a conversation that needs to happen today.”
MarketLit will stream on the event’s YouTube page at 10am AEDT Friday 10 December, with global thought leaders to speak for five minutes each.
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