- 48 percent of 2,000 US respondents in a Bakkt survey revealed they have invested in cryptocurrencies in 2021.
- The majority of investors are using cryptocurrencies for profits and online payments.
Mainstream cryptocurrency adoption is happening gradually in the United States, as more investors hold Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies for profits and online transactions. This is according to a new survey by Bitcoin futures exchange Bakkt. The survey aimed to map the Bitcoin and cryptocurrency adoption trend in the past six months and predict trends in the next six months.
Bakkt surveyed 2,000 consumers from all over the country, 69 percent of whom were aged below 44 years, suggesting that most investors in the US are relatively young. Bakkt is a bitcoin futures exchange that enables institutional consumers to buy, trade and hold a range of digital assets, including Bitcoin.
Roughly 48 percent of the respondents said they have invested in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies since March 2021. However, over 50 percent of the respondents did not invest in any cryptocurrencies, while the majority from across all age groups committed less than $100 in crypto investments. A considerable 19 percent invested less than $100, while 5 percent took more risk to invest atleast $1,000.
48 percent of people have invested some amount in cryptocurrency. Almost 20 percent own $100 or less.
Crypto for long versus short term investments
The survey revealed different uses for cryptocurrencies. 58 percent of the respondents purchased cryptocurrencies for long-term investments, while 43 percent said they were after short-term profits. Meanwhile, 24 percent said cryptocurrencies enable them to buy products and services online. A further 12 percent plan to use cryptocurrencies for in-person purchases, while11 percent intend to make crypto transfers to family or friends.
The trend indicates that while cryptocurrencies users have different intentions, the majority of the investors across all age groups are using them for long-term investments and to accumulate value.
Of those who didn’t invest in the past six months, 32 percent said they are interested. 10 percent admitted to being very interested, 21 percent were somewhat interested, 21 percent remained neutral, while 25 percent said they weren’t interested at all.
Ages 18-44 are the most interested group, with 37 percent of each group interested in investing this year. 40-60+ are the least interested group.
Apart from return on profits, ease of access and lack of fees were important attractive features of cryptocurrencies for investors in the 18-29 and 45-60 age groups, respectively.
For 30-44, lack of centralized control is second to long-term return on investment.
Cryptocurrency confidence and challenges
32 percent said the greatest challenges of using cryptocurrencies are too much volatility, and 24 percent said they didn’t know where to start. 18 percent said they didn’t trust third parties that process cryptocurrency transactions such as exchanges.
The answers also varied based on gender, with women more likely to admit knowing little about cryptocurrencies and the men saying the biggest challenge was volatility.
“I don’t know where to start” is prominent across all age groups suggesting education and ease of use continue to be attractive.
40 percent said they did not know they could purchase parts of a cryptocurrency like Bitcoin, while 35 percent said they did not know anything about blockchain technology.
Younger respondents between 18 and 44 also expressed more confidence in Cryptocurrencies than the less confident group above 44 years.
