About 78% Of Americans Say They’re Uncomfortable Investing In Cryptocurrencies

Regardless of all of the hype round cryptocurrency, the overwhelming majority of People say they’re uncomfortable investing in it, based on Bankrate’s 2025 Lengthy-Time period Funding Survey. Almost 4 in 5 People (78 p.c) say they’re not comfy placing their funding {dollars} in crypto.

So, what is perhaps making People uncomfortable with cryptocurrency? And what are another investments which have confirmed monitor data of enticing, long-term returns? Let’s have a look.

People stay uncomfortable with cryptocurrency

Bankrate’s Lengthy-Time period Funding Survey indicated clearly that People largely really feel uncomfortable investing in Bitcoin and different cryptocurrencies, and solely a comparatively small proportion have been comfy with them. Right here’s how the survey’s outcomes break down:

• Very comfy — 5 p.c
• Considerably comfy — 15 p.c
• Not too comfy — 28 p.c
• By no means comfy — 49 p.c
• Had not heard of it — 2 p.c

The 2025 outcomes have been just like these of the identical survey in 2022, when Bankrate final carried out it. In 2022, 21 p.c of People have been “very” or “considerably” comfy, in comparison with 75 p.c who have been both “not too comfy” or “under no circumstances comfy.”

Youthful generations are usually extra comfy with cryptocurrency. Within the 2025 survey, about 28 p.c of Gen Z mentioned they have been “very comfy” or “considerably comfy” with it, in comparison with 30 p.c of millennials, 21 p.c of Gen X and 6 p.c of boomers.

The dangers of investing in cryptocurrency

Whereas the Bankrate survey didn’t ask respondents to say particularly why they have been uncomfortable with investing in cryptocurrency, it did provide no less than one clue. That’s, the survey requested People why they didn’t choose shares as their high funding, and the highest cause was their notable volatility. Volatility — the stomach-churning up and down of an funding — makes investing troublesome for a lot of merchants.

Volatility

Whereas shares are well-known for his or her volatility, cryptocurrency has it in spades.

“Missing conventional fundamentals corresponding to money stream, the motion in cryptocurrency costs are largely sentiment-driven,” says Greg McBride, CFA, Bankrate chief monetary analyst. “As sentiment shifts wildly, so, too, do crypto costs.”

For instance, throughout its lifetime of round 16 years, Bitcoin has misplaced 60 p.c of its worth or extra in three completely different calendar years. This degree of volatility scares buyers, forcing them out of investments — after they’ve misplaced cash — as the worth of crypto yo-yos.

Cryptocurrency isn’t backed by something

It’s additionally essential to grasp that cryptocurrency (typically) isn’t backed by the belongings or money stream of an underlying enterprise, in contrast to conventional investments. The worth of most cryptocurrencies is predicated solely on the sentiment of merchants and whether or not they anticipate a crypto coin to rise or fall in worth. If demand for a coin disappears, the coin can grow to be actually nugatory.

So the one factor that retains the worth of a crypto rising is by drawing extra money to it — that’s, by hyping it and making an attempt to generate extra pleasure. For instance, many crypto analysts merely challenge bigger and bigger value targets for standard cash corresponding to Bitcoin, serving to to maintain up pleasure that the crypto can rise sooner or later and drawing extra funding {dollars} to it at present.

On this mild, it’s fairly cheap that People are uncomfortable investing in cryptocurrency.

Lack of information and regulation

Many People — maybe particularly the younger, who’re most comfy with crypto — might lack the information and experience to see the hazard of investing in an asset based mostly on nothing and with out satisfactory regulation that requires minimal requirements for elevating cash for one.

Whereas cryptocurrency has been round for various years, many individuals nonetheless don’t know what it’s or why a few of the hottest cryptocurrencies appear to go up (and down). Whereas Bitcoin has seen its value go up many, many occasions, 1000’s of different cryptocurrencies have gone nowhere or have been outright frauds and blown up solely, costing buyers billions.

The crypto market is successfully unregulated, that means anybody can create a cryptocurrency and buyers have few protections. Once more, actually anybody can create a cryptocurrency and lift cash, and greater than 20,000 cryptocurrencies are traded on exchanges, based on many estimates, although some estimates put the variety of current cryptocurrencies within the thousands and thousands.

Facilitation of crime

Cryptocurrency has additionally infamously been utilized by many criminals, permitting them to extra simply commit crimes corresponding to extortion and cash laundering. The semi-anonymity of cryptocurrency and the finality of it — when you’ve despatched the cryptocurrency, it’s gone perpetually — make it simple for criminals to make use of crypto to transact their enterprise.

Various investments to cryptocurrency

People have various confirmed various investments which have a robust report of returns, and, importantly, they’re backed by belongings, in contrast to most cryptocurrencies.

Shares

The inventory market, as measured by the S&P 500 inventory index, has delivered about 10 p.c annual returns over time, making it one of many greatest long-term investments. In actual fact, in Bankrate’s 2025 Lengthy-Time period Funding Survey, People picked the inventory market as their high long-term funding for cash that they don’t want for a decade or extra.

“With crypto, any return on funding is solely depending on the worth growing from what you paid for it,” says McBride. “However shares signify possession in actual companies and money stream could be reinvested within the firm, used to make acquisitions, or returned to shareholders by dividends and inventory buybacks.”

Shares are fractional possession of an organization, and the inventory’s efficiency is pushed over time by the efficiency of that enterprise. Anybody can personal a bit of profitable firms corresponding to Amazon (AMZN), Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) and Apple (AAPL) — and your long-term returns replicate their enterprise success. Plus, if it’s essential to generate earnings, you’ll be able to put money into dividend shares and benefit from the money stream.

“Research have proven that over lengthy funding horizons, dividends comprised roughly 40 p.c of an investor’s complete return,” says McBride. “Not solely does this mean you can earn money in a flat market, however reinvesting these dividends is an extra compounder of wealth.”

Actual property

Actual property is one other standard funding, and it’s recurrently amongst People’ most most well-liked investments, coming in second in Bankrate’s survey. Actual property, whether or not it’s a major residence or an funding property, has delivered enticing returns over time, notably to those that can maintain on for many years and keep away from the substantial transaction prices and taxes. Actual property could be an effective way to generate earnings, too, providing you money every month.

An funding in actual property is backed by the property, in contrast to an funding in cryptocurrency.

Bonds

Bonds are a comparatively protected kind of asset that can be backed by the belongings and money stream of a enterprise or authorities, in contrast to cryptocurrency. With bonds, you make an funding, earn curiosity in the course of the lifetime of the bond after which obtain the bond’s face worth when it matures. Bonds are a sexy place if it’s essential to generate earnings, for instance, for retirees.

Whereas bonds aren’t a lot identified for appreciating in worth, they’re a confirmed long-term funding.

Funding funds

Funding funds — whether or not they’re mutual funds or exchange-traded funds (ETFs) — provide enticing long-term returns. These funds personal stakes in shares and bonds, and the funds’ complete return displays the efficiency of their investments. A few of the greatest ETFs purchase high-growth shares and allow them to compound your wealth for years, and all it’s essential to do is maintain on.

“Particular person buyers have been well-served by common contributions to broad-based, low-cost index funds which are held over a few years with all distributions reinvested,” says McBride.

Funding funds additionally personal dozens, typically lots of, of investments, lowering the danger of a single funding in addition to decreasing the volatility of the fund. These funds are backed by their investments, that are supported by the belongings and money stream of actual underlying firms.

“Use this as your blueprint,” says McBride. “You get prompt diversification from the primary greenback you make investments, rock-bottom funding bills, low or no minimal funding, and common computerized contributions and reinvestment of all distributions allow you to construct your place effortlessly over time.”

Backside line

Most People stay uncomfortable investing in cryptocurrency, and the dangers of investing in it stay outrageously excessive, together with the truth that it’s not backed by something in any respect. In distinction, People have various different investments with sturdy monitor data of confirmed returns.