A quarter of Singaporeans consider crypto as the future of finance — a figure mirroring that of the US and surpassing just 17% reported in the UK, according to a report by Nasdaq-listed cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase.
However, security concerns and price volatility were among the top barriers to entry mentioned by non-crypto owners in Singapore, the study finds.
Commissioned by Coinbase and conducted by YouGov, the study is aimed at exploring Singaporeans’ attitudes towards cryptocurrencies.
Coinbase is one of the 17 firms that have received an in-principle approval as a major payments institution licence holder in Singapore. It announced entering the Singapore market on March 16 via a tie-up with Standard Chartered.
According to the study, 32% of the 2,000 adults surveyed in Singapore have either owned or used to own crypto. Meanwhile, more than half of those who own crypto expect to trade or hold this year.
Individuals with prior cryptocurrency experience and higher income tend to engage in higher trade amounts and frequency. Additionally, the data shows that trade amounts tend to be higher among individuals over 30 years old, while frequency is higher among those under 30 years old.
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Coinbase Singapore country director Hassan Ahmed says that these figures highlight Singaporeans’ excitement and resilience around crypto, on top of the belief in the potential of Web3 technologies.
“The data also illustrates the perspective of local policymakers: Web3 and blockchain technologies can upgrade the financial system and shape the future of finance with use cases such as programmable money and tokenised real world assets,” says Ahmed.
In response to the growing interest in stablecoins, Coinbase has updated its product offerings in Singapore to cater to the demand.
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This includes introducing a no-fee USD Coin (USDC) purchases with the Singapore dollar, allowing users to earn rewards for holding USDC on Coinbase, as well as introducing USDC order books on advanced trading. The latter allows users to trade more than 200 assets against USDC. USDC is a digital stablecoin pegged to the US dollar.
“We firmly believe that USDC will be a key component of a new financial paradigm. Looking to the future, we believe that stablecoins like USDC have untapped potential within mainstream commercial use cases. They can increase financial inclusion by reducing costs and increasing efficiency, enable faster and cheaper global money transfers and serve as a fiat onramp into the new web3 digital ecosystem,” Ahmed adds.
