Almost half of retail investors owned crypto at the end of 2021, with the majority receiving information from YouTube rather than financial advisers, says the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

The securities watchdog announced the results of a poll on Thursday, featuring 1,053 retail investors, undertaken last November. The findings revealed 44% of the polled investors hold cryptocurrency, making it the second most popular investment behind Australian shares, Reuters reports. A quarter of those surveyed who own crypto said that was their sole investment. 

This latest data underscores the increasing rates of cryptocurrency ownership in Australia, statistics that were deemed "implausible" last year, by a senior central bank official.

Moreover, the survey results showed 41% of respondents turned to social media to obtain investment information, 20% opting for YouTube and 11% for Facebook. Meanwhile just 13% gained information from a financial adviser, the survey showed.

"We are concerned about the number of people surveyed who reported investing in unregulated, volatile crypto-asset products," ASIC Chair Joe Longo said in a statement.

"There are limited protections for crypto-asset investments given they have become increasingly mainstream and are heavily advertised and promoted. There is a strong case for regulation of crypto-assets to better protect investors."

The poll was carried out during the same month when the world’s two largest cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin and Ether, reached all-time highs.
deVere boss Nigel Green said recently he predicts Bitcoin will reach a new record high of $70,000 this year: “There’s been a groundswell of interest from institutional investors in Bitcoin and crypto in recent months – and this is set to grow exponentially.

“These experts appreciate the inherent value of digital, borderless, global, tamper-proof, unconfiscatable currency in our increasingly tech-driven world,” he said, adding: “I would not be surprised for it to hit $70,000, which would surpass the previous all-time high of $68,000 in November 2021.”