1 billion crypto users in less than 10 years, research says

A joint study conducted by Boston Consulting Group (BCG), Bitget and Foresight Ventures revealed that adoption of digital assets is still in its infancy. If the trend continues, the total number of cryptocurrency users should reach one billion by 2030, the entities claimed.

Adoption gains traction

According to the research, crypto adoption is still at its nascent point as only 0.3% of total individual wealth is distributed across the asset class. In comparison, 25% of people’s funds are allocated to shares such as shares in private companies.

North Americans are most likely to invest large sums in digital assets, while Africans are in the opposite corner. On average, a single investor from the African continent has a crypto value of around $190.

Despite the low adoption rate and the recent market downturn, BSG, Bitget and Foresight Ventures expect a new wave of people to join the digital asset universe in the following years. Comparing the asset class to the Internet’s development in the 1990s, the entities calculated that the number of crypto users is likely to reach one billion by 2030.

It is worth noting that professional traders find the digital asset industry more attractive than others. Retail investors have allocated about $300 million or 4% of their assets in it, while institutional investors have allocated 2% of their total portfolio.

“Among institutional investors, hedge funds and venture capital firms are most willing to invest. These players have almost doubled their exposure to $70 billion from the fourth quarter of 2020 to the end of 2021. We expect allocations to continue to rise,” the study says.

The research further outlined some of the biggest companies that own cryptocurrencies, including Tesla and MicroStrategy. However, it is worth mentioning that the electric car giant recently sold 75% of its bitcoin holdings for over $930 million.

Coinbase’s CEO with the same forecast

In May of this year, Brian Armstrong – CEO and co-founder of Coinbase – also predicted that the total number of cryptocurrency users across the globe will reach one billion. Contrary to the aforementioned study, the manager believes that this milestone will be reached within the next 20 years.

Armstrong’s forecast does not lack logic as crypto adoption has been on the rise recently, especially during the bull run last year. In the first six months of 2021, the number of people involved in the market more than doubled, reaching over 220 million.

Various sources indicate that more than 300 million people are currently classified as cryptocurrency users.