Latest ‘Real Talk’ Survey by BlockFi Highlights Women in Crypto

The latest BlockFi survey “Women x Crypto” focused on understanding women's investment in cryptocurrencies, and reveals that despite the crypto market downturn, one in ten women say they will choose crypto as their first investment, while women who are already crypto investors remain resilient.

Women Aboard the Crypto Train

The latest BlockFi survey asked female Americans about their current interest in crypto investing. The latest survey is a follow-up to two previous “Women x Crypto“ surveys released in September 2021 and March 2022. The first survey revealed the extent of the gender gap in cryptocurrency investing. According to the result of that survey, at least 94% of women had heard about cryptocurrencies, but only 9% felt they knew a bit more intricate detail about the asset class. The first survey also revealed that 50% of women rely on conversations with their family and friends to make investment decisions. In that survey, 1,023 female Americans between the ages of 18 and 65 were respondents.

The second “Women x Crypto” survey released in March 2022 revealed that nearly one in three women had plans to buy crypto in 2022. In that survey, it showed that the digital asset most women were buying was Bitcoin; 71% of women were buying Bitcoin, 42% were investing in DogeCoin, and 18% purchased Ethereum. It also revealed that a majority of women (70%) who had bought cryptocurrency never sold, making women some of the ardent “HODLers” in the crypto space. In the second survey, 1,031 female Americans between the ages of 18 and 65 were participants.

The latest released “Women x Crypto” survey published by BlockFi on October 24, 2022, shows that women are still “HODLing” cryptocurrencies despite the general market downturn. One in ten women also said they would choose crypto as their first investment. Among the surveyed women who had already started investing in cryptocurrencies, 17% were Millennials while 11% were Gen Z; though these younger generations are more likely to adopt crypto, older generations – Gen X and Baby Boomers – are also open to learning about and investing in cryptocurrency.

A majority of women affirmed having heard about cryptocurrencies before, but 81% still reported that the concepts of cryptocurrency investment are still confusing to them; 71% of women view crypto as a risky asset class.

The latest survey reveals that female investors’ interest in cryptocurrencies has not significantly decreased despite the bear market. One in five of the survey participants believe that crypto is a good hedge against inflation, with more than one in five women saying they still intend to buy crypto in the next 12 months. The women were presented with a list of investment options to choose from, which included individual stocks and real estate; 20% of Gen Z women chose Bitcoin as the best long-term investment, over stocks and real estate.

The survey also shows that a majority of women have adopted a long-term mindset towards cryptocurrency investment as a majority of them buy and hold the asset class. 69% of female crypto owners said they will keep holding and never intend to sell in the short to mid-term. One in four women said they have never explored digital assets. This shows that there is more room for female investors in crypto. As crypto is a new industry, one of the difficulties women who have not explored crypto might face is a lack of crypto education.

Onboarding Women into Crypto

As the BlockFi survey reveals women are highly interested in exploring, investing in, and adopting cryptocurrencies. However, compared to other fintech products crypto lags by the number of active female participants and investors. The crypto space is still very much perceived as a male-dominated space. The gender diversity problem in the crypto space is still very evident. The recent moves made by some fintech companies and neo-banks to render cryptocurrency services to their customers are one of the ways women can be quickly onboarded into exploring crypto assets. Women who use these fintech products and are already acquainted with these products and apps will not have a hard time exploring a new type of asset or investment via these fintech apps.

The availability of more creatively produced and simplistic educational materials that teach crypto from the very basics will help women who would like to learn about the asset class get on board easily. When crypto communities focus on organizing in-person events aimed at educating women about cryptocurrencies, the gender imbalance in the crypto space will be drastically reduced.

Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) were once male-dominated fields; but with the rise of “women in STEM” advocacy, the number of women who are active and have become key industry leaders in the STEM industries has risen by a large margin over the years. There have been some women taking the lead to advocate for more women to join the cryptocurrency space and blockchain industry. It is perceived that when women have more active roles in the industry, it will attract more women to explore and adopt digital assets.

The BlockFi report shows that women’s interest in crypto is essential for the mass adoption of cryptocurrencies. Time will tell if the current interest will spark a massive, organic participation of women in the crypto space.