BTC Markets, a major Australian cryptocurrency exchange, reports that the past year has seen a significant increase in older customers on the trading platform. The bitcoin (BTC) exchange recently conducted a survey of 1,800 respondents:
BTC Markets is excited to launch our inaugural annual Investor Study Report (FY20-21) on the State of Play in the #Australian #Cryptocurrency Market.
Read more to explore the ‘Whats’ and ‘Whys’ behind cryptocurrency investment trends https://t.co/3KYkuWZBgM pic.twitter.com/7qwWP8AtjZ— BTC Markets (@BTCMarkets) September 15, 2021
BTC Markets Says Australian Investors Over 65, i.e. the babe boomer generation, increasingly see cryptocurrencies as a true investment class. The report shows that the number of investors over 65 has increased by as much as 15% over the past year.
The crypto exchange adds that this group is now responsible for as much as 5% of the total customer base. It is also the fastest growing group on BTC Markets after the youngest group, investors between the ages of 18 and 24.
On average, the over-65s deposit much more on the Australian stock exchange. The baby boomers make an average initial deposit of $4,349 AUD (3,166 USD or 2,700 EUR) and have an average crypto portfolio worth $5,084 (USD 3,701 or EUR 3,150), the highest of any group. The youngest group averages only a quarter of this.
CEO Caroline Bowler says low interest rates in particular are driving baby boomers to look for alternative investments like crypto:
“These baby boomers often find themselves at a time in their lives when they have accumulated significant wealth and assets and have many years of experience investing in financial markets. They are not concerned about allocating a small percentage of their wallets to cryptocurrencies.”
Despite the fact that the oldest and youngest groups grow the fastest, the group between 25 and 44 years old remains by far the largest with about 69%. There are also still more male investors (77%) than female (23%). The 5 most popular cryptos on BTCMarkets are: bitcoin (BTC), ethereum (ETH), ripple (XRP), litecoin (LTC) and stellar lumens (XLM).