OJK: Gen Z Susceptible to FOMO and Making Unwise Financial Decisions
REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA – Young people are increasingly engaging with the world of investment and digital financial services. However, behind this growing interest, young people are also considered vulnerable to making impulsive financial decisions by following trends.
The Assistant Director of the Sharia Financial Literacy and Inclusion Group at the OJK, Asadulloh Sefnado, said that young people today are very familiar with technology and quickly follow trends. However, this also makes young people more vulnerable to making financial decisions without careful planning.
“Students and university students are quite susceptible to being influenced by information flows and unwise financial management phenomena such as YOLO, FOMO, and FOPO,” said Sefnado during a Focus Group Discussion (FGD) titled “Beyond Awareness: From Lifestyle to Inclusion” as part of the Road to ISF 2026, held by Republika together with FoSSEI, last Wednesday (13/5/2026).
OJK data shows that Generation Z currently numbers 74.93 million people, or about 27.94 percent of the total Indonesian population. This young age group is considered to have creative characteristics, is open to change, and is proficient in using digital technology. However, they are also more easily influenced by lifestyles and trends on social media. The OJK believes that this condition can trigger consumptive behaviour and risky financial decisions.
Rizka Septia, a student at the Islamic University of Indonesia in Yogyakarta, said that many young people are starting to be interested in entering the world of investment simply to pursue quick profits.
“Many of today’s Gen Z or young people are very interested in the world of investment because of the profits, without thinking about the risks in the future,” said Rizka.
According to her, this condition makes some young investors easily panic when the market declines. She believes that investing without sufficient understanding is risky and can turn into speculative activity.
“If it’s just FOMO and they don’t understand the knowledge, then it’s no different from gambling,” she said.
In addition to consumptive behaviour, the OJK also warns that young people are vulnerable to various forms of digital financial fraud, ranging from bogus investments, phishing, fictitious online loans, to fraud through social media.
Therefore, the OJK believes that improving financial literacy among students and university students needs to be continuously strengthened so that young people can be wiser in managing their finances and investing.