New research from UK based money app Ziglu, which was created by Mark Hipperson, one of the founders of Starling Bank, and which enables customers to buy and sell a range of cryptocurrencies, reveals 10% of adults in the UK claim to currently own cryptocurrencies. A further 7% say they have owned them in the past but no longer do.
Of those people who currently own cryptocurrencies, 39% say they first bought them in the past 12 months, and a further 16% say they did so around a year ago. One in three (34%) say they first bought cryptocurrencies between two and five years ago.
The findings reveal 74% of cryptocurrency owners are men, and 46% are aged 34 and under. One in four people aged 35 to 44 say they own cryptocurrency, compared to just 2% of those who are 65 and over.
Most UK investors are still dabbling
When it comes to how much people have in cryptocurrencies, most are ‘dabbling’ with 24% claiming they have spent £100 or less buying them, and a further 28% have spent between £100 and £500. Only 23% of people with cryptocurrencies have spent £1,000 or more buying them, but 5% have spent over £10,000.
“Our research shows that cryptocurrencies are becoming increasingly mainstream – especially amongst younger people,” said Mark Hipperson, Founder and CEO of Ziglu. “Coronavirus has accelerated growth in the retail cryptocurrency market by at least five years with people spending more time at home and wanting to learn more about it safely. We are seeing huge growth in the number of new clients wanting safe and simple access to crypto.”
Hipperson reported that customers are coming to Ziglu, as he argues it is the is the only UK-owned, based and operated fintech (as distinct from a pure crypto platform) to be authorised by the FCA to operate as an Electronic Money Institution and with FCA registration as a crypto-asset firm.
Hipperson said that Ziglu has the highest security standards and insurance against cyber-attack and offers one of the best user experiences in terms of how easy it is to use for people new to the cryptocurrency market and wishing to dip their toes in the water.
Ziglu is also one of the world’s first cryptocurrency platforms to comply with the Anti Money Laundering and Counter Terrorist Financing standards set by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), implemented in over 200 jurisdictions.
