Why Every Crypto Investor Owns Bitcoin
If you want to become a bitcoin VIP then it pays to know some of the vital stats behind this iconic cryptocurrency. Let’s start with some facts and figures.
As of 2021, emerging data at the time showed that just under 90% of US citizens had heard of Bitcoin or were aware of it. Of those – and at that time, only just under 30% of them would have considered investing in it – and 13% already had.
However, despite so many people being aware of it – 70% of Americans said they didn’t understand how it worked. That was then, and this is now.
Bitcoin will be a much hotter property in 2024
Fast forward to 2024 and the total market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies as of March 2024 stands at a whopping $2.41 trillion. Bitcoin makes up $1.32 trillion of that – which is roughly 55%. So it’s clear something has happened to make more people invest – and learn about it…
Crypto investors know that Bitcoin’s supply isn’t infinite. It’s the world’s best-known and biggest form of crypto and there will come a point when 21 million bitcoins have been mined – that the currency maxes out.
93% of the world’s total stash is in circulation – but it’s estimated that it’ll take until the year 2140 for the rest to get into circulation. The best way to start investing now is to buy it from the investors in the know who have a considerable stash built up already.
Which investors own bitcoin?
It’ll surprise no one that the architect of Bitcoin – Satoshi Nakamoto- is the biggest individual holder. He has an estimated 1.1 million BTC (in ‘real’ money terms this equates to $78 billion) and it works out to be just over 5% of all total currently mined Bitcoin.
Individual investors come in next, owning 57% of all other stocks of Bitcoin, 57%. Many of these seem to be investors who buy and hold – because it’s believed that 70% of what they own is lying dormant in their wallets.
The next biggest is what is termed lost coins – and they account for 17.6% of all Bitcoin. These are coins that go missing because of software and hardware errors.
Big crypto funds surprisingly only own just under 4% of Bitcoin, but this could change over time and the same goes for big businesses, who also own just under 4%, such as Tesla, which has one of the bigger stakes. Last but by no means least – governments hold an estimated 3% of the total supply. This often comes from criminal activities.
Crypto investors and trading
What does this mean? Currently, there is only about 30% of all active Bitcoins being traded. Supply therefore is shrinking slightly. There’s now limited mining potential and lost coins are becoming more frequent. However, Bitcoin is still on the rise and investors are clamoring to trade. With that in mind here are a few more stats on the owners and what they do.
Bitcoin investor stats, facts, and figures
Around 50 million people own Bitcoin at the current moment – and more than 50,000 confirmed transactions of Bitcoin are completed every day. Around the world 1 billion investors use cryptocurrency.
Figures from March 2024 show that roughly 460 million Bitcoin wallets have been created, with roughly 10% of them holding over $1 of value – but as we mentioned earlier about 90% of these are currently inactive or hold coins with little value. In fact, the average amount is less than $100 per wallet. Just over 20% of all Bitcoin wallets hold a value of more than $1,000.
The very latest stats from the first quarter of 2024 show that the number of daily transactions made with Bitcoin worked out at 378,000 – the highest daily figure was achieved on 29th January when 575,000 was achieved. The lowest trading day was 6th February when figures were as low as 278,000.
Which countries have the most investors?
The only country that fully recognizes Bitcoin as legal tender is El Salvador – that said there are many other countries globally who welcome Bitcoin and crypto investors – under strict conditions.
America regards Bitcoin and crypto investors as a “money services business”. Thus, the Bank Secrecy Act sees that they are currently required to go through registration and record-keeping. Investors need to be aware that the IRS classifies it as property for taxation purposes before they trade. Canada has some similar views and laws – they also claim it is a money service and not a real currency. They call Bitcoin transactions ‘barter transactions’ and any income investors make is considered as business income.
Currently, Australia does not consider Bitcoin to be currency and it’s also ruled that it’s an asset – and this is for the purpose of capital gains tax.
Within the European Union – Bitcoin is exempt from VAT because it is considered to be a supply of services. Since leaving the EU, the United Kingdom has set its own Bitcoin laws.
It’s well traded and respected within Crypto circles – it was the original currency to be mined and although its popularity has seen peaks and troughs these stats and facts show why every crypto investor owns Bitcoin – and why they’ll continue to do so in the long run. There’s probably never been a better time to investigate investing!