Coinbase: 57% of Singapore’s ‘Finance-Forward’ Adults Own Crypto

A new Coinbase/Seedly report shows that more than half of Singapore’s “finance-forward” residents own cryptocurrency.

The survey, released Thursday (Feb. 22), shows that 57% of those interviewed hold digital assets, with the majority having between $1,000 and $25,000 invested.

“We are encouraged by the results of the recent survey in Singapore that underscore both the rising interest in cryptocurrency and staking, further solidifying our conviction that decentralized technologies have the power to broaden access to financial services and represent the future of finance,” Coinbase wrote in a blog post.

Among Singapore’s cryptocurrency users, the post said, staking has become the most popular activity in the last year, with 55% of respondents saying they had staked cryptocurrency through a centralized exchange, and 38% using decentralized finance apps.

“The high level of staking activity in Singapore underscores the case for providing consumers with sound, regulated choices while improving consumer protection,” the post said. “Regulating delegated staking through a centralized service or exchange would further differentiate it from lending products ‘window-dressing’ as staking and allow consumers’ assets to remain protected at all times.”

Despite volatility in the cryptocurrency market, Singaporeans are still optimistic when it comes to cryptocurrency’s long-term potential, with 56% calling it “the future of finance,” and 46% expecting prices to climb over the next 12 months, per the post.

Meanwhile, 54% of respondents said they use stablecoins and 35% said they use cryptocurrency for remittances, which lines up with Singapore’s goal of “increasing utility of digital assets and regulatory developments such as the new stablecoin licensing regime,” according to the post.

Cryptocurrency companies have sought to increase their ties to Singapore following a regulatory crackdown in the United States.

For example, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said at a conference in Singapore in September that his company plans to hire 80% of its employees from countries he contended are better than the U.S. at regulating digital assets.

Coinbase — which has called Singapore a “priority market” — received a payments license from the city-state in October, allowing it to offer digital payment token services to individuals and institutions.

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