of Singaporeans
own cryptocurrency
It is estimated that 642,987, 11.05% of Singapore’s total population, currently own cryptocurrency.¹
Having earned herself a reputation as one of the key financial centres in the world, it is unsurprising that Singapore has also established herself as a global crypto hotspot. The Singapore government, along with its primary financial institution, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), has been vocal and active in preparing its citizen for an ‘economy’ of tokenisation.³ Although in recent times cryptocurrency has been the subject of strict surveillance and regulations, this does not equate to the decline of its popularity within the city-state itself. In fact, it is Singapore’s government’s attempt to ensure that the crypto space is well regulated so as to facilitate a safer environment for its investors, stakeholders and citizens.
According to a report done by KPMG, crypto startups in Singapore raised a total of $1.5billion in 2021, up from $109 million in 2020. This was attributed to Singapore’s good balance of friendliness towards crypto and its astute regulations that continue to attract many investors.
As of 2021, roughly 79.9% of crypto holders in Singapore are men, while 80.2% of the crypto holders are under the age of 34. According to a report done by Gemini, it can be concluded that the average crypto holder in Singapore is likely to be a 29-year-old male with an average annual household income of roughly $52,000 per year.
With slightly more than a quarter percent of crypto holders in Singapore holding $15,000/year to no income, it is an empirical representation of crypto’s popularity amongst the younger generation. Still, a majority of Singaporean crypto holders (55%) belong to the educated middle class. ⁷ Unsurprisingly, the two most popularly owned cryptocurrencies are Ethereum (78%) and Bitcoin(69%). Amongst the rest of the other Altcoins, Cardano reigns first with 40%.
