A contrast to their jargon-laden origins, new research released by CoinSpot suggests that cryptocurrencies are creeping into mainstream Australia.

“No longer is crypto reserved for the tech enthusiasts; now everyday investors are getting involved,” said CoinSpot marketing executive Tim Wilks.

Mr Wilks said that both strong growth from market leaders like bitcoin and ethereum and growing interest in alt-coins had seen more everyday Australians get involved in the space.

CoinSpot’s latest look into what Australia’s crypto investors look like found that almost one in five Australians has bought, sold, traded or swapped crypto over the past four years.

This aligns with similar research recently released by YouGov which suggested that one in four Australians currently holds, or has held, cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and ethereum.

In particular, CoinSpot found that investing among Millennials, Gen Z and Gen X has exploded in popularity, doubling since November 2020.

Female crypto investors were also on the rise, accounting for 33 per cent of those surveyed.

In addition, CoinSpot noted that 70 per cent of Australian investors were university-educated and 32 per cent were based in the country.

Also, 34 per cent of Australian crypto investors were single and under the age of 35.

By comparison, 21 per cent of crypto investors were older than 35 and had children.

“These survey findings have indicated a real shift in attitudes towards crypto, especially if we compare attitudes between the 2017 and the 2021 crypto bull markets,” Mr Wilks said.

Despite this shift, just 42 per cent of Gen Z investors said that they had a strong trust in crypto. Millennials ranked even lower at 35 per cent.

Seventy-five per cent of Australian crypto investors did so using an app, but 76 per cent admitted to having done their research.

Seventy-one per cent of Australian investors said that they were willing to accept the high risks that came with cryptocurrencies and crypto assets, while 36 per cent of those surveyed said it was likely that they would own crypto within the next five years.

“While overall trust in cryptocurrency still presents a hurdle from a mainstream perspective, it’s encouraging to see investors are doing their due diligence and ensuring they understand the basics when it comes to investing in crypto,” Mr Wilks said.