Binance calls on industry to fill knowledge gap before next crypto bull run

Research from Binance shows that while intent to invest in cryptocurrency remains strong, security and knowledge are the two concerns that need to be addressed industry-wide before a new height of adoption is realised in Australia.

In ANZ, 60% of crypto investors surveyed had started investing during or after the 2020-21 bull market, meaning that while in the last few years they previously would have been down or flat – the positive outlook in October and the months ahead could be very fortunate for some.

The data backs this notion as 36% of Australian respondents categorise themselves as ‘HODLers’ who are invested for the long term and only 1 in 4 respondents would say they actively trade. Meanwhile, the price of Bitcoin holds at USD $35k. As for future investments, 57% of respondents said they were likely to continue to invest in crypto.

Education is needed to support crypto investors

Overall, the market outlook is more bullish in Australia than New Zealand, but the biggest barrier to entry in both markets was cited as knowledge (NZ: 55% & AU: 40%) demonstrating the need for the industry to provide more access and diverse opportunities for existing and budding crypto investors to learn more about crypto.

The research showed that 45% of Australian crypto investors rate their knowledge as strong in comparison to only 29% of New Zealand investors who believe the same. This drops to 9% & 5% amongst non-investors.

Ben Rose, General Manager of Binance in Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands is concerned that negative sentiment and a lack of education may exacerbate financial inequities apparent in both markets.

Crypto suffers from a lack of knowledge – not a lack of awareness, with 86% of non-investors familiar with the category. This shows that education needs to extend beyond the basics of what crypto is and explore further into the depths of blockchain technology and web3.

“That’s why we invest in initiatives like Binance Academy with free resources for anyone interested in Web3, blockchain or crypto. We’re in the midst of an ANZ university tour as well as attendance at the Australian Crypto Convention, and look forward to continuing these kinds of events to introduce young people to the basics of blockchain technology,” adds Rose.

Some of the most sought-after crypto topics included trading strategies (52%), DeFi (44%), and tax (41%). The channels that 55% of Australians are turning to learn more about crypto are videos on YouTube and TikTok.

Cyber security concerns not unique to crypto

The second hurdle identified in the research was the risk of hacking (NZ: 41% & AU: 29%) which is no surprise considering the sentiment around the cyber security threat landscape. In fact, the recently published report by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner found that nearly 1 in 5 of the data breaches in the first half of 2023 were caused by social engineering or impersonation.

This concern has drifted into the crypto sector with 1 in 3 users saying fears of hacking and losing money would prevent them from investing in crypto.

On the topic of hacking, Rose says, “In any cyber security situation, prevention is always the best cure. While the methodologies criminals are using aren’t new, it’s important to note that crypto is not the root cause of these serious issues but rather is a means to an end.”

“At Binance, we’ve been consistently educating users and collaborating with organisations and law enforcement throughout Australia on scam awareness. As a whole, the industry needs to combine our efforts on raising the standards to prevent incidents and work together on a better path forward that protects consumers and provides users a safe and secure access to crypto,” Rose continues.

Confidence from crypto investors remains steady

An encouraging observation from the findings was that Australian crypto investors feel more confident in their financial decisions.

Interestingly, in comparison to non-crypto investors, 61% of the Australians surveyed who invested in crypto said they were confident or very confident in managing their own investment decisions. This trend continued into the wider realm of finance with 60% saying it was easy or very easy to manage their personal finances, in contrast to only 51% of non-crypto investors.

Almost a quarter of those surveyed who invested in crypto were driven to invest due to fear of missing out (FOMO) at seeing others succeed with their investment choices, being mainly friends and family followed by those on the internet and social media platforms.

“We surveyed respondents in September when market sentiments generally remained bearish and most crypto investors were buying and holding for the long term rather than speculating on different assets or actively trading. Bitcoin has now gone up 100% year-to-date amidst the recent market surge, and investors will be interested to capture volatility,” said Rose.

In terms of mindset, the bulk of respondents see crypto as a type of investment rather than a utility, with diversifying portfolios, 24/7 trading and spare money to invest as reasons for their entering the market.

Rose explains, “We need to shift the narrative away from crypto being a speculative investment to it being a transformative technology with real-world utility through education in order to drive sustainable adoption”

More notable Australian findings include:

• The biggest single driver of investing in crypto is from ‘seeing others succeed with crypto’ (FOMO) at 23%
• Just 42% of crypto investors feel they can explain crypto Well or Very Well to a friend, despite friends/family who invest being a leading avenue for education amongst crypto investors (~35%) and non-crypto investors (~25%)
• 45% feel positive or very positive on the crypto outlook, with 57% saying they are likely or very likely to continue to invest in crypto in the future
• Most are long-term HODLers (buy-and-hold investors) at 36% as they are riding out their investment