We looked at what digital investments young people have purchased, and dug into exactly how popular crypto and NFTs are among Gen Z and Millennials…
Headlines about cryptocurrencies and NFTs are impossible to escape. But how much of the hype about crypto and NFTs is real? Between sudden booms and price drops, viral stories (remember when Elon Musk made Dogecoin’s price surge 44% simply by tweeting “Doge” last year?), and ever evolving digital investment jargon, it can be hard to keep up with the space. However, one fairly consistent narrative is that Gen Z and Millennials are wild about investing in it. So how many young people have actually bought into digital investing?
Brands across industries have jumped into non-fungible tokens, bitcoin, and beyond. But any brand who wants to get involved in the digital investment space should first understand exactly how many young people are participating themselves. YPulse’s Buying Into Crypto and NFTs trend report answers everything from WTF an NFT is, to how many young people are attracted to digital investments and how they stack up to stocks. We asked 13-39-year-olds how many have actually purchased a digital asset, and this is what we found:
Crypto are rivaling stocks as investments for young consumers
In the last two years, more young people have become interested in investing in stocks (remember the Reddit-GameStop craze that kicked off 2021?) and we found that 29% of Gen Z and Millennials overall have purchased them.
But cryptocurrency is just as popular, with 28% of 13-39-year-olds saying they have purchased it. The fact that nearly the same number of young people have invested in crypto as stocks is a huge takeaway–young investors are truly embracing digital assets. In fact, our Buying into Crypto & NFTs trend research found that between crypto, NFTs, and digital land, more young people have made digital asset investments than have invested in stocks. We also found that overall, young people don’t believe that they can build wealth the same way that previous generations did, making new avenues to making money more attractive to them.
NFTs are still growing, but interest is high
Meanwhile, a little over one in ten young consumers tell us they’ve purchased NFTs (a.k.a “non-fungible tokens”) making them not quite as popular as crypto. However, 38% tell us they are interested, showing the potential for growth in this space. While most haven’t taken the leap yet, that hasn’t stopped companies from creating their own. Brands across all industries, from Adidas to Taco Bell, have gotten into NFTs already by launching their own projects, and big-name celebrities and influencers have been vocal about their involvement in the space. And YPulse found that over half of young people think brands should make their own NFTS. But they should be aware that while it’s a buzz-word, it’s still early on, and the majority of young people haven’t gotten involved.
Millennials are more likely to be investing across the board
When we looked at how both generations are buying into these digital investments, we found a significant difference between Gen Z and Millennials. The older generation is more likely to have made investments across the board, with more purchasing stocks, crypto, and NFTs than Gen Z:
While some headlines have attached cryptocurrency and NFTs to Gen Z, our fintech research found early on that Millennials are much more likely than Gen Z to show interest in investing in cryptocurrency. When we broke it down between genders, we found that Millennial males are the ones notably more likely to be investing in the space. However, it should be noted that interest is still high among Gen Z and females, but they just haven’t taken the plunge yet.
But Gen Z is more likely to have purchased crypto than stocks
While Gen Z is less likely to purchase digital investments than Millennials, it shouldn’t be overlooked that this younger generation is more likely to have purchased crypto (20%) than stocks (15%). Millennials are at a phase in their life where they have more financial independence, and are more likely to have income to invest overall. But as Gen Z gets older, they could push digital assets even more mainstream.
YPulse Business users can access the full Buying Into Crypto & NFTs trend report and full data here.
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