Investor interest in cryptocurrency has exploded over the last couple years, and for those who have been keeping up with how crypto acceptance is fairing in the investment marketplace…
There’s NO question that crypto has gone mainstream. If you were waiting in anticipation of some official “critical mass” or “tipping point” announcement, I hate to break it to you…
But your ship has sailed.
Don’t take my word for it! Let’s look at the numbers.
First, a recent study commissioned found that a surprisingly large segment of the U.S. population already owns crypto!
Nearly half of Americans (48%) now include cryptocurrency in their retirement savings, with notable differences across generations.
Gen Z leads the way, with more than half already allocating retirement funds to crypto. Millennials follow closely, showing strong acceptance of digital assets as viable long-term investments.
Nearly HALF! That’s a lot of people. Eddie Mitchell over at CCN also notes:
In addition, two-thirds of Gen Z (67%) intend to increase these allocations
As a side note, Mitchell also notes that “Gen Z investors seem more inclined to simply HODL,” which, if this isn’t your first time visiting us here, is something that we’ve long recommended.
(For those unfamiliar with HODL, it generally means to “Hold On for Dear Life,” meaning investing using a long-term strategy of buying and holding on to the cryptocurrency, as compared to day-traders and other speculators who gamble on rapidly buying and selling.)
So, those Americans most likely to already be investing in cryptocurrencies are planning to buy, to keep buying even more and to hold onto those assets for a long time. That’s no real surprise – in fact, investing guru John Bogle (who was no fan of crypto) famously said, “The more you trade, the less you make.”
Possibly the world’s greatest living investor Warren Buffett lives by this mantra, from the collection Berkshire Hathaway Letters to Shareholders:
“Our favorite holding period is forever.”
A buy-and-hold approach just makes sense. Especially when you believe you’re getting a world-changing asset at a great price!
Even so, the finance industry has eaten the world. There are some $280 trillion in investable assets worldwide – everything from real estate and gold to commodities futures and Australian government debt. And that’s not even counting the humble savings account…
We’re spoiled for choice! If you have a dollar to invest, at least a million people will compete to help you invest it wisely…
So why are so many Americans embracing cryptocurrencies right now?
We’re waking up to the challenges crypto addresses
I have a theory on this. Frankly, any number of forces could be driving crypto acceptance across such a broad swathe of the public. So please take my theories here with a healthy dose of skepticism…
Having said that, the ONE major insight I have is BitIRA customers. Every day, I have the privilege of working with our fantastic customer base. Collectively, they’re much smarter than I am. As a group, they enjoy levels of insight that simply boggle my mind.
Over the past few weeks, here’s a short list of what’s been on their minds:
- Excitement over the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve policy and the White House’s pro-crypto administration
- Massive and almost unprecedented volatility across the global financial system as tariffs force major shifts in world trading patterns
- Concerns that the U.S.-China trade war will continue to escalate, damaging both nations’ economies
- The “Sell America” trade – a side effect of recent tariff policies have driven a sell-off in both the dollar and U.S. government debt assets, which means dollar devaluation and lost purchasing power at least (at worst, total and permanent loss of the dollar’s global reserve currency status)
- Record-setting refinancing costs on the U.S. $36+ trillion debt pile – the federal deficit in the first six months of fiscal year 2025 was the second greatest of all time
- Growing fears of an imminent global recession
Obviously, that list has good news and bad news.
Let’s face it, though – in the modern world, there’s always good news and bad news. You can cherry-pick your sources to weave a narrative of a new golden age or complete and utter despair every week!
So that list will change over time.
So let me tell you the real reason more Americans are diversifying with cryptocurrencies…
An allocation to cryptocurrencies may be their only hope
It’s no secret that many Americans feel they’ve been left behind by our nation’s growing divide between the haves and the have-nots. After all, this is the message that got Donald Trump into the White House this time around.
Whether or not that’s true, this part certainly is: Unless you were born into money or enjoy a top-5% paycheck, you’re likely concerned about whether you’ll ever be able to afford retirement.
Every year, costs keep going up. Longer lifespans and increasingly astronomical healthcare expenses make saving for a comfortable retirement almost inconceivable for most people. This year, the “magic number” to retire comfortably is $1.26 million.
Put another way, that’s over 20 years of wages for the average worker (gross, not net of taxes). No wonder so many are worried they’ll never retire!
And the average retirement account has about $130,000 – a fraction of the necessary amount.
The numbers we’re discussing are today’s numbers. Inflation will drive that magic number higher, year after year…
The Center for Retirement Research at Boston College says:
…inflation may not be stable throughout retirement. Experiencing a bout of high inflation later in life is generally harmful to financial well-being, but, as expected, the impact varies depending on the household’s specific financial profile: the extent to which income and assets grow with (or lag) inflation, and the amount of debt outstanding.
And that last sentence is something that you should pay attention to: “the extent to which income and assets grow with (or lag) inflation.”
For many Americans, crypto may be their only hope
Crypto has been the fastest-growing asset class on the planet for well over a decade now. That is the main reason so many investors are diversifying with cryptocurrencies. Its massive growth potential makes ever having enough to retire possible.
There are a slew of other benefits – inflation-resistant, government-independent, future applications and so on – but the main reason is growth.
If you weren’t fortunate enough to inherit everything you need – if you’re a regular working person like I am and you’d like to stop working one day? Cryptocurrency diversification may be your best bet, too.
If you are ready to start your due diligence in cryptocurrency investing, learn more with our free Insider’s Guide to Digital IRAs. Consider reading up on the world’s most secure digital currency IRA, while you’re at it. And if you’re ready to make the jump into cryptocurrencies, you can open your Digital IRA right now in less than 10 minutes.
