The cryptocurrency industry has had quite a dramatic year so far. After coming from a bullish year in 2021 which saw the price of Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and other significant cryptocurrencies hit all-time highs, the crypto market started January in a downtrend. This was extended in May with the collapse of Terra’s stablecoin (UST) and its sister token, LUNA. This marked the beginning of the “crypto winter” that failed major crypto companies such as Three Arrows Capital (3AC and Celsius. Despite these gloomy market conditions, trust in cryptos like Bitcoin remains strong, according to a survey by Bitstamp.
Crypto Winter Does Little To Affect Global Trust In Digital Assets
The results of a Crypto Pulse Survey commissioned by Bitstamp, a Luxembourg-based crypto exchange, reveal that global trust in cryptos remains mostly strong despite the bear market. The report released on August 30 notes that “sentiment towards crypto remains largely positive through the current crypto winter,” with 65% of retail investors worldwide still viewing digital assets as trustworthy in Q2/2022. This is a slight dip from Q2, when 67% of these investors found cryptocurrencies reliable.
A similar decline was observed among institutional investors, where 67% still find cryptocurrencies trustworthy compared to 70% in Q1. The report notes that these percentages are “inspiring and speak in favor of the industry’s resilience” given that the bear market is still ongoing.
“While the sentiment towards crypto remains largely positive through the current crypto winter, the downtrend has certainly made both retail and institutional investors more prudent in their plans for directing their assets into crypto,” Bitstamp analysts.
The report’s findings per region also revealed varying figures among investors in different countries. In the U.S., retail respondents continued to show more trust in cryptocurrencies recording the “single biggest increase in trust, from 61% in Q1 to 73% in Q2.” Canada was the only country across the Americas that saw crypto trust drop slightly below the 50% mark when comparing Q1 and Q2 among retail investors.
Trust in cryptocurrencies remained high in all other countries in the Americas at or above 68%. Crypto trust in countries such as Chile, Mexico, and Brazil was at 60%, 70%, and 77%, respectively.
Across the Atlantic, the survey involved over 2,000 institutional and 1,000 retail respondents in the UK, Spain, Germany, France, Italy, and The Netherlands and found that 52% of the investor’s rate crypto as trustworthy, down from 54% in April. These figures, however, varied from one country to the other.
Researchers approached respondents from Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and India in the Asia-Pacific region. Institutional investors showed increased trust in crypto, with 66% saying they “would continue to actively recommend crypto as an investment.”
“However, despite the increased caution, it’s undeniable that many investors are using this winter to build a solid ground for crypto’s next bull run.”
The survey features significant insights into cryptocurrencies, recorded through comprehensive primary research commissioned by Bitstamp. The Crypto Pulse survey, an independent research agency conducted between May 19 and June 6, 2022, involved more than 28,000 institutional and retail investors in 23 countries worldwide. It sought understanding their knowledge, plans, attitudes, and trust in crypto. The Crypto Pulse survey for Q1 was released in April.
