The year 2021 was the breakout year for cryptocurrencies, according to Gemini’s Global State of Crypto report, moving one step further in asserting itself as a global, established asset class. This is seen from the cryptocurrency market capitalisation hitting nearly US$3 trillion in 2021, making cryptocurrency the best performing asset class of the past ten years.
This comes after nearly 50% of cryptocurrency owners first bought cryptocurrency last year, in particular with more than half of cryptocurrency owners in Brazil, Hong Kong, and India having gotten started in 2021. In Europe, two in five of those who own cryptocurrency started investing in 2021 as well.
As for the Apac region, Indonesia has been seen to have an increasing ownership of cryptocurrency, followed by Singapore and Hong Kong. At a global scale, Indonesia also continues to rank high in terms of overall cryptocurrency adoption, exceeding the ownership levels of major countries, such as the USA, India and Germany.
Source: Gemini
Boom in cryptocurrency investment in Apac
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In the Apac region, Indonesia tops the region with over 40% ownership of cryptocurrency, followed by Singapore and Hong Kong with 30% and 24% ownership levels respectively. India also stands out with a larger than average percentage of cryptocurrency holders in the country at 20%.
The research points out that for Indonesia and India, their striking ownership levels are likely due to their histories of currency devaluation.
It seems that Indonesia’s sentiment on cryptocurrency is strongly positive as it managed to keep its top spot despite warnings from the Financial Services Authority (OJK) on the market volatility of crypto and a decision by Majelis Ulama Indonesia (MUI) that cryptocurrency was not permissible under Islamic law.
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Other Apac countries such as Singapore and Hong Kong remain more cautious towards cryptocurrency, as their regulators prioritise seeking greater clarity for cryptocurrency businesses and hesitancy towards cryptocurrency as investments by retail investors.
The fear of loss of funds through bad investments and security are noted by Gemini’s report to be top barriers to crypto adoption in the Apac region, which is what 53%, 39% and 52% of Australia, India and Singapore’s respondents respectively pointed out. Other barriers to entry included price volatility that mainly Hong Kong investors noted and wider security issues.
However, both Singapore and Hong Kong continue to possess a higher rate of cryptocurrency adoption than European countries, which saw the lowest adoption rate of any region.
Increased cryptocurrency adoption amongst women
Globally, women in developing countries have been observed to lead cryptocurrency adoption amongst women, where more than half of cryptocurrency investors in Indonesia and Nigeria are women. United Arab Emirates (UAE) however, is an outlier where only 32% of crypto investors are women.
In addition, France has led the way with regards to cryptocurrency adoption amongst women in developed nations, where 45% of its crypto investors are women.
More notably, females have been increasingly involved in the cryptocurrency space both at global and regional levels, with over 50% of women in the US deemed “crypto-curious” and France and Ireland seeing the percentage of female investors among crypto owners increase to 45% and 40% respectively.
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At a regional level, more women in Apac are investing in cryptocurrency as well, with 40% of cryptocurrency owners in Singapore and 41% in India being women. Indonesia is the first Apac country to see more than half of cryptocurrency owners at 51% being women.
According to Gemini’s report, 2022 could be the year to close the cryptocurrency gender gap, as females across the globe have demonstrated increased rates of interest and activity in the cryptocurrency scene moving forward. For those who plan to invest in cryptocurrency in 2022, 22% are between the ages of 18-24, 17% are between the ages of 45-54, compared to 17% and 14% in 2021.
Source: Gemini
Cryptocurrency: the future of money
On a whole, cryptocurrency has inked a name for itself as a clear path for the future of money for many. Its recent results in the present have shown promise from its early beginnings as the “wild west” of finance, as Gemini’s report also finds that venture capital investment in cryptocurrency and blockchain startups exceeded US$30 billion in 2021, with US$10.4 billion in 4QFY2021 alone.
More than half of respondents say that cryptocurrency is the future of money in countries where inflation is the highest, including Apac nations such as Indonesia at 61% and India at 59%.
Meanwhile, regions with a history of experiencing hyperinflation are also seen to believe that cryptocurrency is the future of money as well, with 59% of respondents from Latin America and 58% of those from Africa saying so. Additionally, 46% of respondents from the aforementioned regions also believe that investing in cryptocurrency is a good method to protect against inflation.
According to Gemini’s report, respondents in countries with 50% or more devaluation against USD over the past 10 years were 5x more likely to purchase cryptocurrency in 2022, as opposed to other respondents who experienced less than 50% of inflation.
Source: Gemini
Singapore, which is ranked among the top five countries globally for per capita venture capital funding, saw 26% of its respondents expressing the same sentiment that cryptocurrency is the future of money.
Moreover, a large majority of cryptocurrency investors see cryptocurrency as a good way to diversify their assets, with 71% of India’s respondents, 54% of Australia’s and 52% of Singapore’s identifying with this view.
At a global scale, cryptocurrency is now seen as a long-term investment as well, as 79% of cryptocurrency investors see cryptocurrency as something they would “buy and hold”. In Apac, the vast majority (82%) see cryptocurrency as a buy and hold long-term investment and 56% of cryptocurrency investors are actively trading (buying and selling) cryptocurrency as a way to achieve profits.
Cover Photo: Getty
