Gemini, a cryptocurrency exchange founded by the Winklevoss brothers, has polled about 30,000 respondents in 20 countries between November 2021 and February 2022, and the results show that the number of cryptocurrency owners has massively increased last year, with nearly half of all owners worldwide buying crypto for the first time in 2021.
The company released the survey findings as part of its “2022 Global State of Crypto” report this week. According to the survey, crypto adoption surged in countries like India, Brazil and Hong Kong during 2021, the year when more than half of those surveyed started buying it. These new investors amounted to 54% in India, and 51% in both Brazil and Hong Kong.
Crypto activity was also mounting elsewhere. Latin America (LATAM) and the Asia Pacific (APAC) respondents were also actively buying crypto in 2021, with 46% of respondents in LATAM and 45% in APAC purchasing their first crypto in 2021. And in the USA, 44% of respondents started buying in 2021, and 40% in Europe.
Interestingly, the Gemini report also found that Indonesia and Brazil were leading the way in terms of the share of cryptocurrency investors among the general population. For example, 41% of respondents both in Brazil and Indonesia reported owning crypto, compared to just 20% in the United States, 18% in Australia and 17% in Europe.
Ownership rates are also high in other countries and regions, such as he United Arab Emirates, Singapore and Israel. In the UAE, 35% of respondents own crypto, 30% in Singapore and 28% in Israel. One of the countries with the lowest percentage of ownership amongst the general population is Denmark with a mere 15%. France and Germany have 16% and 17% respectively. Indeed, most of the European countries, including Ireland and the UK hover around the 15-20% mark.
The report also cited the uncertainty over crypto regulation and lack of education as two of the biggest impediments to the mass adoption of crypto. Of those who don’t own any crypto, 39% of respondents in APAC, 37% in LATAM, and 36% in Europe said that there was legal uncertainty around crypto, and 30% of respondents in the Middle East, 24% in the Asia Pacific and 23% in Latin America said that crypto tax reporting kept them away from investing in the sector.