Analysis of the latest report on the crypto market in the US by investment firm Grayscale Investment shows that both cryptocurrency adoption and the number of people holding cryptocurrencies have increased compared to last year.
Summary
The US crypto adoption survey
The share of Americans owning Bitcoin increased to 26% in 2021 from 23% in 2020. Demand for Bitcoin has increased dramatically, with more than half (55%) of current Bitcoin investors having started investing in the last 12 months. About 66% of those who bought Bitcoin more than 12 months ago still own it today. Of the investors who sold, 91% did so at a profit.
The survey, which is now in its third year, is done by sampling 1,000 American consumers on their appetite for investing and buying with cryptocurrencies.
One of the most interesting findings of the report is that it reveals that 59% of investors are interested in Bitcoin as an investment, a percentage that is a big increase from 2020 and 2019, when it was 55% and 36% respectively. 87% of Bitcoin investors also owned more than one digital currency.
Dogecoin better known than Ethereum
As for other cryptocurrencies, according to the survey, more than half of investors were aware of Dogecoin and Ethereum, which are also the other two cryptocurrencies most commonly held by investors after Bitcoin. Almost three-quarters (74%) of investors had heard of Dogecoin, which rather resoundingly surpasses the level of awareness around Ethereum (56%).
More than a quarter of investors were aware of Litecoin, Tether and Cardano, with the awareness level above 25% for each of these cryptocurrencies.
Who owns cryptocurrencies in the US
Also interesting is the figure regarding interest by age of investors. Many are tempted to believe that cryptocurrencies are products that appeal primarily to young people and less to an older audience. According to the report, 46% of those aged between 55 and 64 would be willing to consider these products, compared to 30% in 2020. Interest among female investors has also grown to 53% in 2021 from 47% in 2020.
Bitcoin still accounts for 46% of the total value of cryptocurrency markets. More than three-quarters (77%) of US investors said they would be more likely to invest in Bitcoin if an ETF existed.
In 2020, more than three-quarters of investors preferred to buy directly through an exchange, while in 2021 nearly two-thirds (59%) of investors expressed a preference to buy Bitcoin through cryptocurrency trading apps, while more than one-third (35%) of investors still express a preference to buy Bitcoin directly through an exchange.
More than half of investors consider buying cryptocurrency as a long-term investment.
A change in attitude
Michael Sonnenshein, the CEO of Grayscale Investments, commenting on the results of the survey, argued that while attitudes towards cryptocurrencies would be changing, it is still early days and therefore everything is still evolving:
“While it is encouraging to see attitudes towards crypto continue to evolve, it’s still early days for this industry. It’s incumbent on all of us to remain focused on educating the investing public, so investors — across generations and demographics — can access this once in a generation opportunity”.
