More older millennials and Gen X in Singapore investing in cryptocurrency: report
A third of them own or have owned the virtual currency in 2026, compared with 29% last year
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[SINGAPORE] Singapore’s sandwich class is investing more in cryptocurrency than other age groups, crypto exchange Independent Reserve has found.
This is being driven by “necessity, not novelty”, it said in a report released on Wednesday (Apr 15).
About a third of the 1,500 respondents surveyed invest in cryptocurrency. Out of this group of investors, 42 per cent within the sandwich class age own or have owned crypto.
Independent Reserve defined the sandwich class as “middle-income households facing financial pressure from supporting both ageing parents and growing children”. It added that the group’s age profile is “skewed towards the older millennials and Gen X cohorts”, between 35 and 54 years old.
Among those in the sandwich class who own or have owned crypto, 77 per cent view it as important to long-term wealth building. This is compared with 59 per cent of those surveyed.
The sandwich class also sold more cryptocurrency in the past 12 months, with 65 per cent doing so compared with 44 per cent among all investors.
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More adding crypto to portfolios
The survey, conducted in Singapore, showed that investors here are also adding crypto to their portfolios.
Thirty-two per cent of them own or have owned the virtual currency in 2026. This is compared with 29 per cent of Singaporeans owning or having owned them in 2025.
The bulk of investors (76 per cent) have kept crypto allocations at 10 per cent or less of their entire portfolio.
This mirrors the 70/20/10 portfolio strategy, which allocates 70 per cent to stable long-term assets, 20 per cent to growth-oriented investments and 10 per cent to higher-risk investments, which crypto typically falls under.
The top two motivations for investors still owning cryptocurrency are legacy planning (55 per cent) and wealth accumulation (41 per cent).
Portfolio diversification was cited as the top reason to invest in this area (38 per cent), followed by the unique growth opportunities beyond traditional finance (33 per cent).
Only 11 per cent invested in cryptocurrency for ideological reasons of believing that the system is broken and it is the future.
Better returns
Dollar-cost-averaging (DCA) investors also reported more gains than irregular buyers in the report, 55 per cent compared with 43 per cent.
Loss rates for this group were also lower at 15 per cent compared with 28 per cent for irregular buyers.
Respondents also reported better returns over a longer time horizon, with 87 per cent reporting profits in crypto holdings over 10 years, and 13 per cent reporting losses.
Mark Wong, head of trading at Independent Reserve, said: “If you see it as a long-term asset, then you’re more likely to do well than if you try to time the market where you’re more likely to burn yourself because you’re more likely to buy in times of hype at higher prices.”
Both crypto and non-crypto investors both cited clarity around government regulation as a top factor to increase trust in investing in the virtual currency, at 49 per cent and 56 per cent, respectively.
Such companies behaving responsibly also ranked highly, at 47 per cent for investors and 42 per cent for non-investors.
Nearly half – 49 per cent – of non-investors said price volatility was the main reason why they avoid crypto.
Better consumer protection and industry regulation were ranked as the top two factors that would make non-investors start investing in this space.
Hannah Puganenthran, head of compliance at Independent Reserve, said: “I think what we can actually infer from the data is what consumers may really be saying is that, not that we don’t have enough regulation or protection, but rather they want safety or security.”
This points to a lack of understanding or education rather than regulation, she added. Investors will have to understand the bounds of regulation and the risks of moving outside of them.
Lasanka Perera, CEO, Independent Reserve Singapore, noted: “The combination of strong regulation and informed, disciplined investors points to a growing recognition of crypto as a legitimate component of a diversified investment strategy.”
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