Plurality See Cryptocurrencies As Long-Term Economic Force, Quinnipiac University National Poll Finds; Americans Under 50 Most Bullish On Future Of Cryptocurrencies
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As cryptocurrencies gain more attention in the U.S., a plurality of Americans (43 percent) think that cryptocurrencies will become a dominant economic force in the long-term, while 35 percent think they are a short-term trend, and 22 percent did not offer an opinion, according to a Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pea-ack) University national poll of adults released today. The survey was conducted in collaboration with the Quinnipiac University School of Business and its GAME Forum XI event.
There are large differences by age. The percentage of Americans who think cryptocurrencies will become a dominant economic force in the long-term by age:
- 18 to 29 year olds: 55 percent;
- 30 to 49 year olds: 53 percent;
- 50 to 64 year olds: 40 percent;
- 65 years of age and over: 21 percent.
Two-thirds of Americans (66 percent) say they have either heard or read a lot (28 percent) or some (38 percent) about cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, while one-third of Americans (33 percent) say they have heard or read not too much (16 percent) or not much at all (17 percent).
While 38 percent of men say they have heard or read a lot about cryptocurrency, only 20 percent of women say they have heard or read a lot about cryptocurrency.
The percentage of Americans saying they have heard or read a lot about cryptocurrency by age:
- 18 to 29 year olds: 35 percent;
- 30 to 49 year olds: 38 percent;
- 50 to 64 year olds: 25 percent;
- 65 years of age and over: 11 percent.
"Even though most people under 50 haven't heard a lot about cryptocurrencies, a majority of them see crypto becoming a dominant economic force in the future. That signals the marketing is working as crypto companies target sports advertising in a push to go mainstream," said Quinnipiac University School of Business Professor of Finance and Director of GAME Forum, Osman Kilic, PhD.
OWNING CRYPTOCURRENCY
Fewer than 1 in 5 Americans (16 percent) say they currently own cryptocurrency, while 74 percent say they have never bought it, and 8 percent say they owned it in the past, but no longer do.
Among those who currently own cryptocurrency, they say the current value is:
- $1,000 or less: 46 percent;
- More than $1,000 but less than $10,000: 34 percent;
- $10,000 or more but less than $50,000: 9 percent;
- $50,000 or more: 4 percent.
REASONS FOR NOT OWNING CRYPTOCURRENCY
Americans who do not currently own cryptocurrency were asked whether any of the following were reasons for why they do not own cryptocurrency:
- 46 percent say they are not interested in it;
- 43 percent say they don't understand it enough;
- 33 percent say they don't think it is secure;
- 27 percent say prices move up and down too much;
- 25 percent say they don't have extra money to invest;
- 22 percent say they don't know how to invest in it;
- 19 percent say they don't know anywhere to spend it.
Americans who do not currently own cryptocurrency were asked the likelihood of them buying cryptocurrency in the next 12 months. Only roughly 1 in 10 (12 percent) say it's either very likely (2 percent) or somewhat likely (10 percent) that they will buy cryptocurrency in the next 12 months, while nearly 9 in 10 (88 percent) say it's either not too likely (19 percent) or not likely at all (69 percent) that they will buy cryptocurrency in the next 12 months.
Americans were asked if they were given $1,000 to invest, would they invest it in a cryptocurrency or in traditional stocks. Nearly three-quarters (73 percent) say they would invest it in traditional stocks, while 16 percent say they would invest it in a cryptocurrency.
"Cryptocurrencies may be becoming more well known, but there's still a lot of skepticism about actually owning them, including among young people who are the most bullish on crypto's future. A lack of interest and understanding is holding them back, and there are also concerns about crypto's price volatility and just how secure crypto is," added Kilic.
NON-FUNGIBLE TOKENS
A slight majority of Americans (52 percent) say they have heard of non-fungible tokens or NFTs, while 47 percent say they have not heard of NFTs.
There are wide differences among gender and age groups. Sixty-one percent of men have heard of NFTs, while only 43 percent of women have heard of NFTs. The percentage of Americans saying they have heard of NFTs by age:
- 18 to 29 year olds: 70 percent;
- 30 to 49 year olds: 67 percent;
- 50 to 64 year olds: 41 percent;
- 65 years of age and over: 25 percent.
Only three percent of Americans own non-fungible tokens.
1,936 U.S. adults nationwide were surveyed from March 10th - 14th with a margin of error of +/- 2.2 percentage points.
The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Doug Schwartz, Ph.D. since 1994, conducts independent, non-partisan national and state polls on politics and issues. Surveys adhere to industry best practices and are based on random samples of adults using random digit dialing with live interviewers calling landlines and cell phones.
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Poll Questions
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Question 16. President Biden signed an executive order to explore the creation of a U.S. digital currency. Do you think creating a U.S. digital currency is a good idea or a bad idea, or haven't you heard enough about it?
ADULTS........................................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-29 30-49 50-64 65+ Good idea 12% 15% 9% 19% 15% 9% 4% Bad idea 39 43 34 36 38 42 37 Hvn't hrd enough 48 40 55 45 46 46 56 DK/NA 2 2 2 - 1 3 3 ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... 50K-- 100K-- REGION................... <50K 100K 200K 200K+ NEast MWest South West Good idea 12% 11% 12% 18% 12% 10% 13% 11% Bad idea 40 39 40 33 36 45 37 37 Hvn't hrd enough 46 48 47 49 52 40 48 50 DK/NA 2 2 1 1 - 4 1 2 HEARD/READ CRYPTOCURRENCIES Q17 CRYPTOCURRENCY OWNERSHIP Q18.. A- So- NotToo- NotMuch- Currently Owned/ Never Lot me Much AtAll own NoLonger Bought Good idea 25% 9% 4% 3% 32% 19% 7% Bad idea 50 42 34 16 36 50 38 Hvn't hrd enough 23 47 61 77 31 31 53 DK/NA 2 2 1 3 - 1 2 -
Question 17. How much have you heard or read about cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin; a lot, some, not too much, or not much at all?
ADULTS............................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-29 30-49 50-64 65+ A lot 28% 38% 20% 35% 38% 25% 11% Some 38 36 40 39 38 39 37 Not too much 16 14 18 11 12 19 24 Not much at all 17 12 21 15 11 17 27 DK/NA 1 - 1 - - - 2 ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... 50K-- 100K-- REGION................... <50K 100K 200K 200K+ NEast MWest South West A lot 24% 31% 29% 44% 26% 27% 28% 31% Some 31 40 49 31 40 34 38 40 Not too much 19 16 15 15 19 16 15 15 Not much at all 25 13 7 10 14 22 18 12 DK/NA 1 1 - - - - - 1 CRYPTOCURRENCY OWNERSHIP Q18.. Currently Owned/ Never own NoLonger Bought A lot 64% 57% 17% Some 31 34 41 Not too much 4 8 20 Not much at all 1 2 22 DK/NA - - - -
Question 18. Which comes closest to your personal situation regarding cryptocurrencies? A) You currently own a cryptocurrency. B) You have owned a cryptocurrency in the past, but you no longer do. C) You have never bought a cryptocurrency.
ADULTS............................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-29 30-49 50-64 65+ A) Currently own 16% 22% 11% 23% 27% 11% 2% B) Owned/No longer 8 11 6 16 12 3 2 C) Never bought 74 66 82 61 60 85 93 DK/NA 1 1 2 1 1 1 3 ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... 50K-- 100K-- REGION................... <50K 100K 200K 200K+ NEast MWest South West A) Currently own 12% 20% 21% 26% 14% 14% 16% 21% B) Owned/No longer 10 8 10 9 9 6 8 9 C) Never bought 77 72 68 65 76 78 74 67 DK/NA 1 - 1 1 1 1 1 2 HEARD/READ CRYPTOCURRENCIES Q17 A- So- NotToo- NotMuch- Lot me Much AtAll A) Currently own 37% 13% 4% 1% B) Owned/No longer 17 7 4 1 C) Never bought 45 79 91 96 DK/NA 1 1 1 2 -
Question 19. (If currently own cryptocurrency q18) And is the current value of these: $1,000 or less, more than $1,000 but less than $10,000, or $10,000 or more? (If more than 10k) Would that be less than $50,000 or $50,000 or more?
ADULTS.......................... CURRENTLY OWN CRYPTOCURRENCY Q18 Tot Men Wom $1k or less 46% 46% 46% $1k-10k 34 31 40 $10k-50k 9 11 4 $50K+ 4 4 5 DK/NA 7 7 6 HEARD/READ CRYPTOCURRENCIES Q17 ALot Some $1k or less 40% 59% $1k-10k 36 35 $10k-50k 12 1 $50K+ 6 1 DK/NA 6 4 -
Question 20. (If never bought or no longer own cryptocurrency q18) For each of the following, please tell me whether or not any of these are reasons you do not own a cryptocurrency: you don't know how to invest in it, you don't have extra money to invest, prices move up and down too much, you don't think it is secure, you don't know anywhere to spend it, you don't understand it enough, you are not interested in it.
ADULTS......................................................... NEVER BOUGHT OR NO LONGER OWN CRYPTOCURRENCY Q18............... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-29 30-49 50-64 65+ Don't know how to invest 22% 18% 25% 27% 16% 21% 25% Don't have extra money to invest 25 23 26 30 26 21 24 Prices move up and down too much 27 29 25 40 28 20 22 Don't think is secure 33 33 33 37 31 34 34 Don't know anywhere to spend 19 17 21 25 19 14 21 Don't understand enough 43 37 47 46 35 42 49 Not interested 46 44 47 44 39 45 53 DK/NA 4 4 4 4 6 4 2 ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... 50K-- 100K-- REGION................... <50K 100K 200K 200K+ NEast MWest South West Don't know how to invest 27% 23% 15% 12% 19% 22% 23% 21% Don't have extra money to invest 36 25 16 4 21 26 31 17 Prices move up and down too much 27 25 30 23 25 27 27 27 Don't think is secure 33 35 36 33 33 37 30 37 Don't know anywhere to spend 23 18 14 11 18 21 20 16 Don't understand enough 45 47 38 32 41 39 46 41 Not interested 45 47 43 37 50 50 43 42 DK/NA 4 3 5 3 7 5 2 3 HEARD/READ CRYPTOCURRENCIES Q17 CRYPTOCURRENCY OWNERSHIP Q18 A- So- NotToo- NotMuch- Owned/ Never Lot me Much AtAll NoLonger Bought Don't know how to invest 11% 19% 31% 28% 6% 23% Don't have extra money to invest 23 24 28 25 31 24 Prices move up and down too much 32 29 24 18 48 24 Don't think is secure 38 38 30 23 29 34 Don't know anywhere to spend 9 20 29 20 10 20 Don't understand enough 15 43 54 61 14 46 Not interested 37 43 49 55 24 48 DK/NA 4 5 2 2 8 3 -
Question 21. (If never bought or no longer own cryptocurrency q18) How likely are you to buy cryptocurrency in the next 12 months; very likely, somewhat likely, not too likely, or not likely at all?
ADULTS......................................................... NEVER BOUGHT OR NO LONGER OWN CRYPTOCURRENCY Q18............... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-29 30-49 50-64 65+ Very likely 2% 2% 2% 2% 4% 2% 1% Smwht likely 10 14 6 18 14 6 3 Not too likely 19 16 20 26 24 16 10 Not likely at all 69 67 70 53 58 75 85 DK/NA 1 1 1 1 - 1 2 ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... 50K-- 100K-- REGION................... <50K 100K 200K 200K+ NEast MWest South West Very likely 3% 2% 2% 1% 2% 1% 3% 2% Smwht likely 9 8 10 12 9 4 13 10 Not too likely 15 18 25 27 24 15 15 23 Not likely at all 73 71 62 58 64 77 68 65 DK/NA 1 - 1 1 1 2 - 1 HEARD/READ CRYPTOCURRENCIES Q17 CRYPTOCURRENCY OWNERSHIP Q18 A- So- NotToo- NotMuch- Owned/ Never Lot me Much AtAll NoLonger Bought Very likely 5% 2% 1% - 12% 1% Smwht likely 16 11 6 3 31 7 Not too likely 19 23 20 9 27 18 Not likely at all 59 64 70 86 30 73 DK/NA 1 - 3 1 - 1 -
Question 22. Do you think that cryptocurrencies are a short-term trend or will become a dominant economic force in the long-term?
ADULTS........................................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-29 30-49 50-64 65+ Short-term trend 35% 34% 37% 34% 32% 37% 39% Long-term force 43 48 38 55 53 40 21 DK/NA 22 18 26 10 15 23 40 ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... 50K-- 100K-- REGION................... <50K 100K 200K 200K+ NEast MWest South West Short-term trend 34% 40% 38% 33% 44% 33% 33% 34% Long-term force 42 46 42 47 36 42 45 45 DK/NA 25 15 21 20 20 25 21 21 HEARD/READ CRYPTOCURRENCIES Q17 CRYPTOCURRENCY OWNERSHIP Q18.. A- So- NotToo- NotMuch- Currently Owned/ Never Lot me Much AtAll own NoLonger Bought Short-term trend 29% 40% 39% 32% 18% 36% 39% Long-term force 59 42 37 23 75 58 34 DK/NA 11 18 24 45 7 6 27 -
Question 23. If you were given $1,000 to invest, would you invest it in a cryptocurrency or in traditional stocks?
ADULTS........................................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-29 30-49 50-64 65+ Cryptocurrency 16% 18% 14% 18% 23% 11% 8% Traditional stocks 73 73 74 72 68 78 79 DK/NA 11 9 13 10 9 11 13 ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... 50K-- 100K-- REGION................... <50K 100K 200K 200K+ NEast MWest South West Cryptocurrency 16% 17% 15% 14% 15% 14% 18% 15% Traditional stocks 70 77 78 79 77 70 73 74 DK/NA 14 6 6 7 8 15 9 11 HEARD/READ CRYPTOCURRENCIES Q17 CRYPTOCURRENCY OWNERSHIP Q18.. A- So- NotToo- NotMuch- Currently Owned/ Never Lot me Much AtAll own NoLonger Bought Cryptocurrency 25% 16% 11% 6% 41% 17% 10% Traditional stocks 66 77 76 78 55 78 78 DK/NA 9 8 13 16 5 5 12 -
Question 24. Have you ever heard of non-fungible tokens, commonly referred to as NFTs?
ADULTS........................................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-29 30-49 50-64 65+ Yes/Heard 52% 61% 43% 70% 67% 41% 25% No 47 38 56 30 31 58 74 DK/NA 1 1 1 - 1 1 2 ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... 50K-- 100K-- REGION................... <50K 100K 200K 200K+ NEast MWest South West Yes/Heard 41% 56% 64% 71% 56% 45% 50% 58% No 58 44 35 28 44 54 50 40 DK/NA 1 - - - - 1 1 2 HEARD/READ CRYPTOCURRENCIES Q17 CRYPTOCURRENCY OWNERSHIP Q18.. A- So- NotToo- NotMuch- Currently Owned/ Never Lot me Much AtAll own NoLonger Bought Yes/Heard 76% 57% 32% 20% 86% 81% 41% No 23 43 67 78 14 17 58 DK/NA 1 - 1 2 - 2 1 -
Question 25. Have you ever heard of non-fungible tokens, commonly referred to as NFTs? COMBINED WITH: (If yes/heard q24) Do you currently own any non-fungible tokens?
ADULTS........................................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-29 30-49 50-64 65+ Own NFT 3% 5% 1% 6% 5% 1% - Heard/Not own 48 56 41 63 62 39 24 Haven't heard 47 38 56 30 31 58 74 DK/NA 1 1 2 1 2 2 2 ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... 50K-- 100K-- REGION................... <50K 100K 200K 200K+ NEast MWest South West Own NFT 3% 1% 3% 11% 2% 5% 3% 2% Heard/Not own 38 54 61 60 54 39 46 55 Haven't heard 58 44 35 28 44 54 50 40 DK/NA 1 - - - - 1 1 3 HEARD/READ CRYPTOCURRENCIES Q17 CRYPTOCURRENCY OWNERSHIP Q18.. A- So- NotToo- NotMuch- Currently Owned/ Never Lot me Much AtAll own NoLonger Bought Own NFT 9% 1% 1% 1% 14% 5% - Heard/Not own 66 56 30 19 72 74 41 Haven't heard 23 43 67 78 14 17 58 DK/NA 2 1 2 2 - 4 1