Behind the Cryptocurrency Buying Frenzy

In his weekly Forbes column, Ron Shevlin looks at the increase in trading volume of the major cryptocurrencies in 2020; Starting in February, trading volume hit a new high that was sustained through May before dropping off in June; a new study from Cornerstone Advisors revealed that 15% of American adults now own some form of cryptocurrency with just over half making their first investment in the first six months of this year; nearly eight in 10 crypto buyers were men and the average income was $130,000 with 70% having a Bachelor’s degree or higher; Millennials (26 to 40 years old) comprised 57% of the consumers buying cryptocurrency in 2020 with Gen Xers (41 to 55 years old) accounting for 30%; Square has benefited from this this surge in crypto trading with bitcoin revenue for their Cash App growing to $306 million in Q1; with the OCC last week announcing support for crypto custody services there is a real opportunity for banks to provide Bitcoin wallets and other cryptocurrency trading services as a way to differentiate their services. Forbes.

  • Peter Renton

    Peter Renton is the chairman and co-founder of Fintech Nexus, the world’s largest digital media company focused on fintech. Peter has been writing about fintech since 2010 and he is the author and creator of the Fintech One-on-One Podcast, the first and longest-running fintech interview series.