The number of investors who made a fortune holding Bitcoin is actually extremely small, according to a latest report from migration by investment company Henley & Partners. The company specialises in helping wealthy clients obtain residency in cities all over the world.
The firm’s Crypto Wealth Report 2023 looked into the assets, spending habits, and investment trends of the rich. It found that 425 million people on earth hold some form of cryptocurrency – this is consistent with a July research by K33 Research that found that nearly half a billion people in the world hold crypto.
Of the total people holding crypto globally, 210 million hold Bitcoin.
Bitcoin wealth
The report proceeds to look deeper into individuals who accumulated parts of their wealth by holding Bitcoin. It found that there are just 40,500 ‘Bitcoin millionaires’ around the world – these are individuals with Bitcoin holdings of US$1 million (AU$1.57 million) or more.
When it comes to ‘Bitcoin centi-millionaires’ – i.e. individuals with Bitcoin holdings of US$100 million (AU$157 million) or more – there are only 78 such people globally. Finally, there are just six ‘Bitcoin billionaires’ on earth.
Sadly, none of these people are me.
Does Bitcoin make you rich?
While the report doesn’t disclose Bitcoin’s wealthiest holders, it does give us an idea of exactly how much BTC you’d have to accumulate to reach that level of wealth.
At the time of writing, 1 BTC is equivalent to US$25,800 (AU$40,500). This means that to be a Bitcoin millionaire, one has to hold at least 38 Bitcoins. Some quick maths also showed us that to be a Bitcoin centi-millionaire, one has to hold at least 3,880 Bitcoins in their wallet.
Finally, to be a Bitcoin billionaire, one has to hold over 38,800 Bitcoins – only six people in the world are in this position. Are you able to afford even a single Bitcoin?
Who exactly are these crypto mega-rich people? We may never know. However, we did more maths on this, and also found that “Bitcoin’s richest” hold a total of at least 2.07 BTC. As there will only ever be 21 million Bitcoin in existence, this means that you might still have a chance to invest, invest, invest, and hopefully become Bitcoin-wealthy one day. Personally, this gives me a teeny tiny bit of hope that I’d be able to compete with infamous Bitcoin hoarders like Michael Saylor!
Crypto adoption worldwide
The report from Henley & Partners also shared a Crypto Adoption Index measuring the rate of adoption, innovation, and overall acceptance towards crypto worldwide.
Singapore, long known for being at the forefront of emerging technology like crypto and blockchain, ranks first in the world overall with an average total score of 50.2. Switzerland ranks second with 46.9 points, and the UAE came in third with 45.7. Australia ranks sixth overall on the Crypto Adoption Index with 43.1 points.
“Australia has been at the forefront of regulatory efforts to balance innovation and consumer protection, which has contributed to shaping the country’s crypto ecosystem,” wrote the report.
“The approach to the crypto industry ‘Down Under’ is positive, with a strong focus on responsible innovation and consumer protection,” it continued. Not sure if we agree, given the Senate’s recent takedown of a proposed crypto bill to regulate the crypto industry – but guess we’ll take it.
