Singapore’s crypto ownership exceeds 26%, with youth leading the trend

The percentage of Singaporeans who hold crypto is on the rise, with 26% now holding digital currency in 2024.

A recent report by Singapore crypto payments firm Triple-A says this has increased to 24.4% in 2023.

A poll of 1,006 Singaporeans reveals that the younger generations are leading the way. Gen Z (born 1997-2009) hold around 40% of cryptocurrency. Millennials (born 1981-1996) are not far behind at 39%. Gen X (born 1965-1980) and Baby Boomers (born 1946-1964) hold 19% and 9% respectively.

Generational differences in Singapore’s crypto usage

The Triple-A report indicates that there are strong trends in the adoption of cryptocurrency across different age groups in Singapore. The younger generations are likely to incorporate digital assets into their daily money-making endeavors.

Among Gen Z and Millennial crypto holders (16-44 years old in 2025), e-commerce retailing leads the way with 41.1% using cryptocurrency to make e-commerce transactions. Bill payments come in second at 35.9%, where these young shoppers pay utility bills and subscription services in digital form. Third is in-store shopping at 27%. This indicates physical retail adoption is building steam among younger cohorts.

Conversely, older generations between 1918 and 1980 have distinct preferences for their uses. This generation makes peer-to-peer transfers very frequently, with 42.9% of them applying cryptocurrency for purposes of friend-to-friend and family transfers alone. The younger generation shows a lower percentage of 38.7% for this kind of transfer. Internet shopping ranks second among older users at 35.7%, followed by bill payments and in-shop purchases with much lower percentages at 17.2% and 17%, respectively, than their younger counterparts.

Remittance payments contain a fascinating trend: 33.6% of younger users are transacting cross-border using cryptocurrency, as opposed to only 25.1% of older users. This implies that younger Singaporeans are more at ease exploring remittance channels beyond the confines of conventional banking infrastructure.

The most marked gap is in bill payments, in which younger customers (35.9%) are more than twice as probable as the older generations (17.2%) to use cryptocurrency. The gap suggests that younger customers may be more receptive to utilizing cryptocurrency for everyday financial obligations.

Singapore crypto payment ecosystem sees growth

Singapore’s crypto payment network has increased significantly. Almost US$1 billion (S$1.3 billion) worth of crypto was processed through merchant services during the second quarter of 2024. That is significantly greater than any previous quarterly total during the past two years, according to blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis.

The rise in payment volume comes as more companies accept cryptocurrency. Some merchant collaborations include AXS, which works with Triple-A to enable app users to pay bills and top up using cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, USD Coin, and Tether.

Charles & Keith fashion retailer has incorporated crypto payment choices on its online store, and Apple product reseller iStudio now accepts cryptocurrency at its brick-and-mortar stores.

User incentives for taking up crypto payments show pragmatic concerns above investment interest. According to the Triple-A survey, 37% of respondents identified international acceptance as the most important advantage of cryptocurrency payments. Second on the list was the speed of transactions at 29%, and 20% valued lower fees, especially in cross-border transfers.

But according to data, users too have some issues. These range from complexity of use, which ranked as the highest issue, with 63% of the respondents having found areas such as private key management hard to manage. Security issues came in a close second at 60%, while merchants’ limited acceptance is still a challenge for 54% of respondents.

Singapore has accelerated crypto licensing

Singapore’s expanding cryptocurrency usage operates within a progressively structured regulatory framework. The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has accelerated its licensing of digital payment token (DPT) firms. It has granted a record 13 new licenses in 2024 itself.

In spite of 2024 global technology sector job cuts, the future of Singapore’s blockchain jobs is bright. In a poll conducted by the Singapore FinTech Association (SFA), HQ.xyz, SG Builders, and Superteam, more than 75% of regional Web3 firms intend to hire more staff members in 2025.

60% of surveyed companies also intend to increase their staff by half or more. Currently, the local Web3 sector directly employs 2,433 individuals. The SFA attributes this hiring to growing institutional adoption, ongoing technological improvements, and expanding applications for blockchain technology.

In-demand roles span various specialties, including partnerships, marketing strategy, sales, product management, and software engineering. The industry growth has also created opportunities in adjacent professional services such as legal, advisory, and consulting roles.

Cryptopolitan Academy: Coming Soon - A New Way to Earn Passive Income with DeFi in 2025. Learn More