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The Young and the Restless: Millennial Males Dominant Among Crypto Investors in the US

Last Updated
Mark Emem
Last Updated

Age and gender seem to be crucial factors when it comes to purchasing cryptocurrencies in the world’s largest economy.

According to a survey  conducted by cryptocurrency startup Circle, the interest of millennial men in investing in crypto is higher than that of millennial women with 18% of the former planning on investing in crypto in the course of the next one year compared to 7% in the latter group.

This was not restricted to the millennial generation though as across the different age groups men were more interested in buying cryptocurrencies compared to women. For instance, 17% of males in the United States above the majority age intend to invest in crypto in the coming 12 months compared to 8% of women.

Attitude Towards Risk

With regards to risk-taking, the gender divide was present across generations too. More millennial men, for example, identified themselves as being aggressive investors compared to millennial women – 42% for the former and 27% for the latter. Among Baby Boomers (ages 52-70), 16% of the men indicated that they were aggressive investors compared to 9% of the women. For Generation Xers (ages 36-51), 34% of the men viewed themselves as aggressive investors compared to 19% of their female counterparts.

Regardless of gender, the survey which saw over 3,000 respondents above the age of 18 interviewed demonstrated that the younger the individual, the higher their interest in buying cryptocurrencies. In the coming 12 months, a quarter of millennials indicated interest in buying cryptocurrencies. For generation X, only 10% have shown an interest in purchasing cryptocurrencies in the next 12 months. The figure was even lower with regards to Baby Boomers where only 2% are planning to buy crypto in the next one year.

Already Dipped their Toes…

So far 71% of millennials have invested less than US$1,000 in cryptocurrencies with 29% have put in amounts ranging between US$500 and US$1,000 while 42% have staked amounts of less than US$500.

Notably, 25% of millennials indicated they would be open to moving some of their 401(k) into cryptocurrencies. Interestingly, a significant number of millennials still view cryptocurrencies as speculative assets with 11% saying it was a chance to make a quick buck.

Circle’s survey showing the higher interest in cryptocurrencies among millennials echoes another study conducted in the United Kingdom earlier in the year which showed that some in that age group preferred bitcoin over real estate. This was attributed to a view among millennials that bitcoin and other cryptos have more upside potential compared to property.

Featured image from Shutterstock.