Summary of this article
Friends, family, and finfluencers shape most investment decisions: Sebi Investor Survey 2025
Social media rivals traditional media as key awareness source
Trust in finfluencers high; many investors act on advice
Most Indian investors learn their first lesson in markets from a friend, a WhatsApp group, or a video on YouTube. According to the Sebi Investor Survey 2025, personal networks continue to play the biggest role in shaping investment awareness and decisions.
Nearly 59 per cent of investors surveyed said they rely on friends, family members, or colleagues for information on securities market products. Close behind are financial influencers on social media, with 56 per cent of investors turning to them for guidance across social media platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter.
This influence of social media is not incidental. As the survey points out, almost 60 per cent of respondents recalled seeing or hearing content related to securities market products on social media in the three months prior to the survey. “Personal contacts, finfluencers, and digital peer groups remain the top sources of information for investors,” the survey notes, reflecting how informal channels now dominate the discovery phase of investing.
Traditional media, however, has not disappeared. Television remains the second most preferred medium, particularly for information on mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Beyond this, online investment communities, ranging from Telegram and WhatsApp groups to Reddit and Facebook forums, serve as information sources for 34 per cent of investors.
Financial news websites and blogs influence 28 per cent, while financial professionals such as investment advisors, practicing CAs, and bank representatives, along with market and company analysis reports, guide around 25 per cent of investors.
Where an investor lives still makes a meaningful difference. Among equity investors in rural areas, friends and family (63 per cent) and social media influencers (62 per cent) carry significantly more weight. In contrast, investors in the top nine towns show relatively lower dependence on peers and influencers, both at 51 per cent, and instead display a stronger inclination toward market analysis reports, cited by 28 per cent.
The survey also reveals sharp differences across income groups and age cohorts. NCCS B investors overwhelmingly depend on peers, with 65 per cent naming them as a key source of information. Gen X investors, meanwhile, are more inclined toward structured educational resources.
A similar divergence is visible among mutual fund and ETF investors. In the top nine towns, peers (56 per cent) and financial influencers (53 per cent) emerge as the least common sources of awareness. Instead, market and company analysis reports (25 per cent) and educational resources (19 per cent) take precedence. According to Sebi’s survey report, NCCS A investors frequently use online investment communities (29 per cent) and analysis reports (21), while these channels see far lower engagement among NCCS B+ investors.
NCCS, or the New Consumer Classification System, is used by Sebi to categorise households for the survey. The classification is based on the education level of the chief wage earner and ownership of selected consumer durables. It classifies households into groups A to E and is applied uniformly across urban and rural areas, offering a contemporary measure of affluence and consumption, as defined by Sebi.
For housewives, however, the pattern reverses. As per the survey report,awareness about mutual funds and ETFs largely comes from peers (65 per cent) and financial influencers (61 per cent).
Trust in finfluencers (financial influencers) stands out as one of the survey’s most striking findings. As per the report, 93 per cent of investors rate financial influencers as moderately to highly credible, and 62 per cent say they have acted on finfluencer recommendations when making investment decisions. YouTube leads the pack, used by 91 per cent of investors, followed by Instagram (64 per cent) and Facebook (61 per cent).
Taken together, the survey shows that India’s investment decisions are increasingly formed through conversations, content, and communities that investors trust most.
