Diverting Resources from Online Gaming and Cryptocurrency to Stock Market
The ‘fiinfluencers’ is a new jargon that has emerged on social media, they are like self-declared financial influences and are already providing consultancy to small and vulnerable investors. — Alok Singh
Bharat is young today and will remain young for the next twenty-five years. The internet along with affordable smartphones, and other computing devices have penetrated the deep interiors of the country. There are many places where the internet and smartphones arrived earlier than the arrival of electricity and tap water facilities. This combination of youngness and affordable internet connectivity has created a huge opportunity for the rural population. The rural-urban gap for internet-dependent businesses has evaporated.
The energetic youth is much more convenient in milking these opportunities and it is reflected when one can see that even the illiterate youngsters are using the smartphones more conveniently than the educated elderly. There was an experience in the year 2015 when an illiterate helper of a carpenter sent a voice message using WhatsApp to a well-educated professional client, and the professional-client replied using a text message, then the helper again sent a voice message acknowledging that he was illiterate so couldn’t read but can send and receive voice messages. Initially, it was tough to believe that a person can’t send text messages but can send voice messages. Today it’s not surprising at all. That’s an exemplary application of technology which even demolishes the boundary between the illiterate and educated to communicate from a distance using technology.
Online games are the other area where the semi-literate is participating in huge numbers. These people are not only the urban educated people but also the urban skilled and unskilled laborers, and further, the young populations from rural areas have also joined this sector. The way the over-the-top “OTT” and other entertainment channels are accessed by the rural population, with the same enthusiasm the rural population is participating in online games and fairly educated people even participated in cryptocurrency. The magnitude of participation might differ for cryptocurrency. But as far as online game is considered it is equally participated by youths from rural and urban areas. The internet and smartphones are boundaryless technology and the users are not constrained by the location of their stay in accessing, investing, participating, and losing money or making money through these online games and other technological innovations.
The success of BHIM-UPI in receiving and paying money is equally available to urban and rural civilizations. This payment civilization is acknowledged worldwide and we have offered to share the technology with the whole world, and it is like walking the talk of a “Vishwa Guru”.
These illustrations are sufficient to admit that the rural population is equipped and is participating in online games and cryptocurrency businesses. The union government has developed laws, policies, taxation, and other regulations to safeguard the interests of the vulnerable population and the nation. These choices which have exploded due to affordable smartphones and cheap internet connections are of concern as these are addictive and need proper vigilance by the lawmakers as well as by the society.
These concerns also come up with the opportunity and idea of engaging these resources involved in online games and cryptocurrency toward stock markets. The awareness, education, promotion, and regulation of stock market-related business can emerge as a win-win situation for the stakeholders of the nation. The idea is to promote such investments and participation by rural Bharat.
The successful execution of real estate investment trusts (REITs) and infrastructure investment trusts (INVITs) are signals to engage small investors of online games and cryptocurrency towards the stock market. The expressway construction is not constrained by budget today, the innovative idea of engaging small investors in mega projects is a success. Earlier one or a few big wealthy contractors or builders invested their money in such projects and earned revenue for decades through toll collection. All the profits were pocketed by a single or group of individuals. The INVITs are an opportunity for small investors to participate in mega construction projects and milk the profit later through toll collection. INVIT is diminishing the constraints that only big and wealthy people can do such business. INVIT can be simplified to be a cooperative for mega projects like expressways. In the same way, REIT is an opportunity for small investors to own expensive commercial buildings like office spaces, malls, and even five-star hotels. The REITs and INVITs provide an opportunity for partial ownership. Before the arrival of these two invent trusts it was beyond the imagination of common people to invest in such projects. This motivates to think about small investors hedging the volatility created by single big investors.
The theme of vocal for local capital needs to be promoted. When we think about the stock market then foreign institutional investors and high-net-worth individuals were able to create sudden volatility in the market. The hot money is still an issue. Hot money is defined as money that can easily enter and exit our financial system like the stock market and currency market and weaken the stability of the stock market and currency market. If the domestic investors are participating in the stock market such hot money can be hedged.
The idea to divert vulnerable resources, i.e., Vulnerable youth, small investors, and less educated people’s money from online games and cryptocurrency to the stock market might help to hedge the hot money. There is a need for the concerned authorities to come up with a plan to create awareness, promote investment in the stock market, and regulate such investments so that rural resources can also contribute to meaningful opportunities.
Online games and cryptocurrency have attracted a lot of resources from our people including those of rural Bharat through their advertising mechanism. To, counter it and provide an alternative to those having interests in online games and cryptocurrency, there is a need to create, divert, promote, and regulate investment opportunities for less educated in the stock market. The ‘fiinfluencers’ is a new jargon that has emerged on social media, they are like self-declared financial influences and are already providing consultancy to small and vulnerable investors. This is possible today, as before the year 2015 the internet and smartphones were not available to all.
The regulators have multiple tasks in hand with multiple opportunities, to hedge the impact of hot money and promote ‘vocal for local capital’ in our financial economics system.
(Alok Singh has a doctorate in management from the Indian Institute of Management Indore and is a freelancer academician.)
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