Crypto adoption in Australia
According to the latest Independent Reserve Cryptocurrency Index (IRCI) 2025 report, 31% of Australian adults own or have owned cryptocurrency. That’s up from 28% in 2024 – meaning around 6.2 million Australians are now part of the crypto community.
All-time high crypto adoption: 31%
Bitcoin leads the way
Bitcoin continues to dominate as the most widely held digital asset:
- 70% of Australian crypto investors hold Bitcoin (around 4.3 million people).
- Ethereum is the next most common, held by nearly 30%.
- Other notable holdings include Dogecoin (17.3%), XRP (15.1%), Solana (12.3%) and Cardano (10.2%).
Who owns Bitcoin and crypto?
By age
- 25–34 year olds are leading the charge, with more than half (53%) owning crypto.
- Baby Boomers are slowly catching up, with adoption rising from 5.8% to 8.2%.
- Australians 65 and over have seen adoption grow fourfold since 2019, though from a very low base.
By gender
- 43.2% of men own crypto in 2025 (up from 37.5% last year).
- 21.9% of women report ownership – a modest rise but still far lower than male adoption.
Why Australians invest in crypto
The IRCI also looked at what motivates people to buy crypto. Top reasons included:
- Encouragement from family and friends (52%)
- Curiosity sparked by media coverage (46%)
- Diversification of investment portfolios (30%)
- A quarter of respondents said they invested “to get rich” (25%)
- A smaller group use crypto for payments (6.2%, up from 5% in 2024)
SMSFs and crypto adoption
Self-Managed Super Funds (SMSFs) are increasingly exploring digital assets:
- 36.4% of SMSF investors say they’re likely to invest in Bitcoin (up from just 13.6% in 2019).
- 22.2% would prefer exposure via crypto exchanges.
- 14.2% favoured ETFs – a slight decline from previous years.
These figures show that trustees are experimenting with different channels to gain exposure while balancing compliance obligations.
Superannuation funds and crypto
Beyond SMSFs, mainstream super funds are slowly dipping into digital assets:
- 18% of Australians would like their super fund to include Bitcoin (up 5% year-on-year).
- Interest is strongest among 25–34 year olds (32.3%).
- Among existing crypto investors, one in three (33.8%) would like to see Bitcoin in their super.
A notable milestone came in late 2024, when AMP became the first Australian super fund to include Bitcoin, albeit at a very small allocation of 0.05%.
What this means
Crypto ownership in Australia is becoming more mainstream. While younger generations are leading adoption, older Australians and even superannuation funds are starting to engage. Bitcoin remains the gateway asset – but diversification is steadily increasing.
For SMSF trustees, the steady rise in adoption highlights the importance of staying across compliance requirements, record-keeping, and secure storage practices.
Source: Independent Reserve Cryptocurrency Index 2025
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