South Africans optimistic about cryptocurrency investments – survey

A survey conducted by cryptocurrency exchange platform Luno has shown that South African crypto investors are expressing positive outlooks, with most intending to hold onto their investments.

The platform concluded its customer sentiment survey for Q3 2021 which covered 1 870 Luno customers in South Africa, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the UK. Over 1000 respondents were from South Africa.

The survey showed that South African cryptocurrency investors were most optimistic when it came to Bitcoin and Ethereum.

“New insights indicate that the stereotypes around cryptocurrency investors may not hold true,” Luno General Manager, Marius Reitz, said in a statement.

“Instead, we are seeing that South Africans who own crypto are saving more regularly, have longer term goals and are more financially savvy.”

Bitcoin is currently trading at around $43 000 (R654 500).

In August, the cryptocurrency reached more than $50 000 (R761 000) in value.

However, the survey showed that local investors aren’t necessarily interested in short-term gains from cryptocurrencies. Rather, many indicated their intention to hold onto their crytocurrency.

Survey shows South Africans with Bitcoin are in for the long haul

Luno also announced it had seen an increase in active customers from South Africa.

The number of local users who bought or sold cryptocurrency increased by 140% during the last twelve months.

Total Bitcoin trading across several exchanges in the country totalled around $25 million traded in the last 24 hours. Trading on Luno accounted for 56% of that amount.

According to the survey, 61% of South African customers intend to hold their investment — or buy more if the price drops — over the next six months.

The survey also found 14% of South African users planned to day-trade for short-term profit for the rest of 2021.

On average, South Africans hold on to their cryptocurrency investments for eight months before they sell them.

During the last three months, 12% of South African Luno customers used the platform’s repeat buy function. The function lets them automatically purchase cryptocurrency at regular intervals.

“On average, they are buying around R400 worth of crypto a month,” Reitz said.

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Featured image: Unsplash/André François McKenzie