The rapid increase in cryptocurrency’s popularity and mainstream adoption is almost unprecedented. Some might even call it crazy. So to show you just how incredible the current crypto space is, we’ve compiled 20 cryptocurrency stats that you may not have known.
1. Bitcoin currently has a market capitalization of $433.13 billion, as of July 22nd.
Cryptocurrency’s most valuable coin has a huge market capitalization, equal to or higher than the economies of most countries.
2. Bitcoin’s highest ever market capitalization was a massive $1.263 trillion
But current Bitcoin markets are by no means at their peak. In November 2021, Bitcoin reached its largest ever peak, with a market capitalization of $1.263 trillion.
3. It is expected that the global number of crypto owners will reach 1 billion by the end of 2022
This is according to the Crypto Market Sizing Report, published in January 2021.
4. In 2021, the number of crypto users grew 178%, from around 106 million to 295 million by the end of the year
This increase in crypto users was especially buoyed by the support from large technology companies such as Mastercard. The growing adoption of cryptocurrency by large companies provided confidence to aspiring investors that crypto was around to stay.
5. The country with the highest percentage of crypto usage is Nigeria
According to Statista, 32% of Nigerians reported having used or owned cryptocurrency. In second place was Vietnam with 22%, and the Philippines was in third place with 21%. The countries with the highest usage of cryptocurrency were generally found in the Global South, reflecting the freedom that crypto can give to those who want to escape expensive currency conversions.
The USA was ranked eighth in the ranking, with crypto owned by around 6% of the population.
6. Crypto investments are very disproportionately male
85% of all Bitcoin traders are male, against 15% who are female. This is clearly a very significant gap and reflects a failure of the crypto industry to attract female investors.
7. 67% of Millennials see Bitcoin as a safe haven asset
A large number of Millennials reported that they see Bitcoin as a safe asset to hold in the event of economic downturn. This is reflected by the fact that 25 to 34 year olds are the age group that hold the largest proportion of crypto.
8. A social media post mentioning cryptocurrency appears every two seconds
According to a Reuters study, between 14,000 and 32,000 tweets mentioning cryptocurrency appear every day. This means that on average there is a post every two seconds.
Every 10 minutes, the number of Bitcoin tokens in the market increases, as miners are always excavating new blocks.
10. 90% of all possible Bitcoins have been mined so far
Since Bitcoin is a finite cryptocurrency, this means that mining will take place until the limit of 21 million Bitcoin is reached. 1,899,675 Bitcoins are left to be mined, or around 10% of all possible Bitcoin. However, the last Bitcoin isn’t expected to be mined until 2140.
This is an increase from just 50 cryptocurrencies in 2013, made easier by a more friendly crypto space and the success of ICOs.
12. 65% of cryptocurrency users own Bitcoin
As the original and most valuable cryptocurrency, Bitcoin is by far the most popular type for crypto investors, according to Binance Research.
13. Bitcoin market dominance is currently 41.6%
That means that of the entire crypto market capitalization, 41.6% is held by Bitcoin. This is clearly a significant amount. Many investors keep track of this value, to determine the value of investing in other coins or in Bitcoin.
14. The largest holder of Bitcoin owns about 3% of the world’s total supply
The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust is the largest owner of Bitcoin and, as of April 2022, owned 653,919 Bitcoin, which is more than 3% of the total Bitcoin in the world.
15. Only 1.3 million Bitcoin are available to be bought on online exchanges in 2022
The relatively low number of Bitcoin that are available on online exchanges compared to the total Bitcoin in existence is due to certain amounts of Bitcoin being tied up in locations such as investment funds or personal savings etc.
16. Between 2017 and 2018, cryptocurrency startups raised over $18 billion through ICOs
2017-2018 saw a huge boom of investment in crypto startup coins, amounting to over $18 billion dollars invested in ICOs, the crypto equivalent of an IPO. Since 2018, the success of IPOs has declined.
17. The largest ever ICO raised over $4.2 billion
The EOS coin ran a year-long ICO, which managed to raise over $4.2 billion. This was bigger than the private capital raised for 2018’s IPOs in Uber, Juul and Epic Games combined!
18. The global blockchain technology market was valued at $5.85 billion in 2021 and is forecasted to reach $1.2 trillion by 2030
According to Statista, this market value of nearly $6 billion represents a massive growth in the sector in recent years.
But blockchain’s growth is by no means over, expected to grow at an annual compound rate of 82.8 percent until 2030.
19. It is estimated that by 2030 banks could save $27 billion dollars through blockchain technology
Blockchain can save banks billions of dollars by making processes such as money laundering checks, compliance and payment processing quicker and cheaper.
20. The price of bitcoin increased by 540,000% between 2012 and 2021
Between 2012 and bitcoin’s highest ever price in 2021, bitcoin has seen a tremendous percentage increase in price, reflective of its rapid rise in popularity and acceptance into the mainstream.
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