According to a recent survey, data collected by the popular Japanese crypto exchange bitFlyer, crypto investment has become the 4th most popular form of planned investment for respondents in the USA, overtaking gold.
- The survey focused on people in the USA and Japan, and between the two nations, some very large differences in how cryptos are viewed emerged.
- Additionally, the survey has confirmed that COVID-19 has made a major impact on the investment landscape, especially among people who aren’t in a high-income bracket.
- bitFlyer targeted over 3,000 people in the USA and Japan, aged 20-59 with their survey.
- In the USA, stocks were the most popular form of investment, followed by 401(k) investment, which was in the same group as insurance and certificates of deposit.
- The third most popular form of investment with US respondents was real estate, with cryptos in fourth place.
- 30% of US respondents said they think Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies will be attractive in 2021.
bitFlyer Survey Shows Bit Differences Between USA and Japan
While cryptocurrencies seem to be gaining popularity in the USA, Japanese respondents were far less optimistic about the asset class in 2021.
Just 5% of Japanese respondents said they had exposure to some form of crypto asset, compared to 22% in the USA.
When it comes to interest in tokens – the difference between the two nations was also large.
In the USA 39% of the respondents who have never used or invested in cryptocurrencies said they were interested in the sector – compared to 15% in Japan.
Overall, Japanese respondents appear to be far less interested in investing in financial assets this year. Just 18% of the respondents from Japan said they were planning to make investments in financial assets this year – compared to 68% in the USA.
The price action of most assets has been roughly the same between the two nations, as the US dollar and Japanese yen are both stable currencies.
Cryptocurrencies have been on the rise in both countries, and despite this, the rising prices don’t seem to be attracting more interest from Japanese investors.
A Big Bump in US Interest
One big factor that investors in the USA cited as a reason for their interest in cryptocurrencies is the price action. Major cryptos have been in a bullish trend, with both Bitcoin and Ethereum making new all-time highs in 2021.
One respondent from the US told bitFlyer that,
“Cryptos are growing at a fast rate and I feel they will keep growing and be very profitable.”
So far this year, the respondent’s view has been absolutely correct, with Bitcoin rallying from around $20,000 USD to above $36,000 USD at the time of writing.
Risk and Hard Times
The bitFlyer survey also revealed that many people are risk-averse, and also have little money to divert to investment assets.
Another respondent in the USA told the survey that,
“I have no job currently, so no income. Can’t invest what you don’t have.”
While the US has taken measures to lighten the impact of COVID-19, like suspending evictions and sending out stimulus checks, these policies aren’t likely to address the structural issues that the economic fallout from COVID-19 has created.
Japanese investors appear to be put off by the risk that entering the cryptocurrency markets presents.
A Japanese respondent said that,
“I don’t want to lose even 0.0001% of my money. I don’t want to invest in anything that has the risk of losing even a small amount of money. However, if there is a no-risk, high-return investment, I will definitely do it.”
Given the price moves in the cryptocurrency markets, the risk of mark-to-market losses is high. This may continue to dissuade risk-averse investors from entering the space.
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