Finance influencer disclosure rules

What the FTC requires

• Disclose any material connection: payment, free or discounted products, employment, or a personal or family relationship.
• Make it hard to miss: put the disclosure in the post itself, not only on a profile page, at the end, or behind a “more” link.
• Use simple words: “ad,” “sponsored,” or a clear sentence about the relationship. Vague tags on their own, such as “collab” or “sp,” aren't enough.
• Video and live streams: say the disclosure and show it on screen, and repeat it during live streams for people who join late.
• Platform tools: the FTC advises not to rely on a platform's built-in label alone.

What Section 17(b) adds for stock content

Section 17(b) of the Securities Act of 1933 makes it unlawful to publicize a security for compensation from an issuer, underwriter, or dealer without fully disclosing the compensation, past or future, and its amount. For finance creators, that means saying they were paid, by whom, and how much, whether the payment is cash or shares.

What a clear disclosure looks like

A disclosure works when a reader can't miss it and understands it immediately. A short line at the start of the post, such as “Paid promotion: [Company] paid me [amount] for this post. Full details: [link],” covers both the FTC and Section 17(b) expectations in a compact form.

What the company should do

• Use a written agreement that requires clear disclosure in every paid post.
• Give creators a brief built only from public information, with no price targets or predictions.
• Review key content before it goes live and keep a log of every published post.
• Match creators to your industry and investor type so the audience is relevant.

Questions