Gen Z’s Lead the Way in Crypto Adoption in Australia

Swyftx’s annual survey has uncovered Australia still sits in the top ten countries for global crypto adoption, with around 20% of the population owning digital assets.
The questionnaire also found that interest in crypto among Gen Z Aussies exploded through 2024, recording an 11% increase in ownership among that demographic.
The survey also discovered that Australians are particularly regulation-sensitive, as millions watch and wait to see how the government polices digital currency.

Australia has long been heralded as one of the world’s leading crypto adopters – and a 2024 Swyftx survey showed that trend is still going strong. The questionnaire, which targeted 2,229 Aussies, found that close to 4 million (around 20%) of the population currently own digital currencies.

This is one of the highest global adoption rates, beating out the US (16%), France (9%) and Switzerland (19%). However, the survey also uncovered that retail investors are largely staying wary of the crypto market, waiting for the regulatory framework to become clear over the next few years.

Related: Anonymised Survey Shows 61% of Aussie Crypto Investors Declared a Net Gain for FY2024

Half a Million Gen Z Aussies Bought Crypto In the Past Year, Survey Reveals

Gen Z respondents – those born 1996 or later – were the standout demographic in Swyftx’s latest survey. Looking back just 12 months, approximately 21% of Gen Zers said they own or previously owned digital assets. This figure was in line with overall adoption rates among Aussies.

Fast forward a year, and the landscape has shifted dramatically. According to Swyftx’s 2024 report, 32% of Gen Zers surveyed claimed to hold crypto in their portfolio – a massive 11% increase. This works out to about half a million Australians aged 28 or younger buying crypto over the last year.

The surge in Gen Z ownership was mirrored by a drop in adoption across every other generation, with Millenials and Gen Zers representing 67% of all crypto ownership among Australians.

Millions of Australians Await Tighter Regulations

Despite younger Aussies coming to the crypto party, a significant number of potential investors remain on the sidelines thanks to murky regulations. While governments are now starting to look at progressive (rather than restrictive) financial frameworks for digital currencies, how they will take place in Australia is still unclear.

According to the survey, one in three Australians said they’d be more likely to purchase digital assets with increased regulations – with Millenials and Gen Zers once again leading the charge.

Swyftx CEO Jason Titman summarised the findings by claiming approximately two-to-six million Australians could jump into the crypto market once “the dust has settled on regulation”.

The evidence coming out of Australia strongly supports the idea that the international crypto economy will exponentially grow when it’s regulated. We think a regulated industry is almost certainly how we hit one billion global crypto owners.

Jason Titman Swyftx CEO