Global cryptocurrency ownership hits 562 million, 34% jump from 2023

Global adoption of cryptocurrencies has witnessed a significant increase as the new number of crypto owners in the world rises to 562 million a 34% increase from 2023.

The impressive growth reflects the growing reach of digital assets which are now owned by approximately 6.8% of the world population.

A report by Triple A confirmed the new figure of 562 million crypto owners in the globe with a detailed breakdown of key countries leading in crypto ownership and parts of the globe that witnessed the most surge in crypto ownership over one year.

Asia leads the surge in crypto ownership with a 21.8% increase from 268.2 million to 326.8 million. North America follows closely with a 38.6% rise from 52.1 million to 72.2 million. South America recorded the highest growth in comparison with others hitting a 116.5% increase from 25.5 million to 55.2 million.

Europe and Africa also recorded significant increases with Europe rising from 30.7 million to 49.2 million a 60.3% increase. Africa on the other hand recorded a slight increase rising from 40.1 million to 43.5 million, an 8.5% rise. Oceania doubled its cryptocurrency ownership from 1.4 million to 3.0 million, a 114.3% increase.

The Triple-A report also highlighted the demographic makeup of global crypto owners the largest group falls within the 25–34 age range, comprising 34% of the total. The 35–44 age group follows closely at 31%.

Experts believe the surge in cryptocurrency ownership can be attributed to regulatory agencies of various countries setting clear guidelines, boosting market integrity and investor confidence. Examples of such regulatory bodies include the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the European Union.

For the methodology used by Triple-A to report the latest Global Digital currency ownership data, Triple-A utilized Country Weighted Scoring, Outlier Research, and Primary Data Collection to obtain the most wholesome and accurate set of statistics in conjunction with the various data sources evaluated.

What to know The report reflected the seeming gender gap in global cryptocurrency adoption. The report revealed that 61% of global owners of cryptocurrency are male while 39% are female.According to Forbes, Nigeria has the highest number of crypto owners in Africa with about 47% of the population (22 million people) owning cryptocurrencies. This high percentage reflects Nigeria’s ranking at the 11th position globally in 2022, ahead of Kenya (ranked 19th).Crypto Regulation in Africa remains the biggest challenge to crypto adoption as at witnessed in Nigeria of recently where Nigerian authorities are currently involved in a spat with Binance Limited, the biggest crypto exchange in the world leading to the detention of Binance executives. The government has also moved to ban other cryptocurrency exchanges engaging in peer-to-peer trading which it accused of manipulating the local currency.

Michael Ndu-Okeke I am Michael Ndu-Okeke, a new media enthusiast focused on Business and market news in Sub-Saharan Africa. I also cover the intriguing world of Cryptocurrencies and Nigerian Business efforts in the UK and the US.