Crypto has become very popular in recent years. For example, according to Coinbase, 20% of US residents own cryptocurrencies, and in some countries it will be even more by 2022. According to a Goldman Sachs study, crypto is remarkably more popular among affluent investors. As many as 32% of those surveyed family office has exposure to crypto.
More exposure among large investors
In a report entitled ‘Eyes on the horizon,” the US investment bank writes that it has interviewed 166 family offices worldwide. A family office is a financial service provider that supports one or more generations of a wealthy family in managing their wealth. 72% of the family offices Goldman surveyed manage at least $1 billion. 57% of this is in the Americas, and 21% in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA).
The research covers a large number of topics, but blockchain and crypto were also discussed. No less than 68% do not invest in crypto, so a large majority, but 32% do. 19% of all respondents believe in the usefulness of blockchain. 9% cite portfolio diversification as the main reason, and 8% use crypto as a store of value. 8% use the asset class to speculate.
The uninterested group unfortunately shows a less positive story for the sector. In 2021, 45% of respondents still stated that they were not interested then, but may be in the future. This has dropped to just 12%. That clearly indicates that the bear market and bankrupt crypto companies have made a major breach in confidence.
Recession, geopolitics and inflation the biggest problems
Of course, crypto is not the only thing this category of investor is into. We live in turbulent times, and that is reflected in the image of the respondents. 73% of respondents in Asia are concerned about geopolitical developments. That is considerably more than in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (47%) and in North and South America (56%).
Still, a large portion of investors don’t seem to be too concerned. Globally, 26% expect to increase exposure to US assets over the next 12 months. 61% say they will not change anything about this. Many parties would also like to take more risks in 2023.