Women in crypto is a topic that basically looks to highlight the growing role of women in the burgeoning industry, t a time when there’s still a large gender gap to the men.
While women are increasingly getting into crypto as of 2022, statistics show their numbers are way behind those of men. Indeed, women are shown to lag men in cryptocurrency and blockchain at even greater percentages than in most traditional investment verticals, including in stocks, bonds and ETFs.
However, despite the gender gap, crypto has seen some key firsts from women and attracted support from prominent women politicians and regulators. Among the latter two, US Senator Cynthia Lummis and SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce stand out. The lawmaker has earned the “Bitcoin Lady” title, while Peirce is popularly referred to as “Crypto Mom” for her support of regulatory clarity for crypto.
But let’s dive in and see what else stands out in the world of cryptocurrency and women.
Women in crypto – The key stats and facts
- Globally, 37% of crypto owners as of November 2022 are women – up from 21% in 2021.
- A third of women investors planned to buy crypto in 2022, while 24% of those surveyed said they already hold, trade or use crypto.
- More women crypto users are educated, with 50% having a bachelor or master’s degree, compared to 37% of men.
- Less than 5% of crypto entrepreneurs and founders are women, an indication that crypto is still very much male-dominated as of 2022.
- Bitcoin, Dogecoin and Ethereum are the most popular cryptocurrencies among women investors.
Statistics on how many women invest in cryptocurrency
1. More than 37% own crypto owners worldwide are women
Globally, more than 320 million people owned cryptocurrency as of early 2022, with estimates putting that figure much higher by the end of the year. According to statistics by research platform Triple A, about 37% of global crypto owners as of November 2022 were women. The number has grown from about 21% in 2021.
2. 94% of women say they have heard of cryptocurrency
A 2021 survey found that 94% of women had heard of cryptocurrency. However, a tiny number of just 9% said they understood the asset class.
3. The number of women investing in crypto doubled in 2022
More men invest in cryptocurrencies compared to women, with research showing that there are twice as many male crypto investors as there are women. However, a recent survey by GOBankingRates found that the number of women who invest in crypto jumped from 7% in 2021 to 15% in 2022, representing a more than 100% rise. The gender gap remains though, with 38% of men investing in crypto, up from 16% in 2021.
4. About 19% of women aged 18-29 have invested, traded or used crypto
Younger women, just as with men, are the most likely to invest in cryptocurrency. According to a Pew Research Center study, approximately 19% of women aged 18 to 29 years have invested, traded or used one of the many cryptocurrencies. However, that figure is still lower compared to the 43% of men within the age range.
5. 1 in 3 women planned to buy crypto in 2022
A third of women had plans to buy crypto in 2022, according to recent statistics 0n women participation in crypto. Per the survey results, another 24% of women investors already have crypto as part of their portfolios.
6. Half of women crypto investors believe Bitcoin will go up over the next five years
Bitcoin price reached an all-time high of $69,000 in November 2021, before falling to levels seen in 2020 following a brutal bear market in 2022. But despite the crash and the wild fluctuations, over 50% of women crypto investors believe the flagship cryptocurrency’s price will continue to climb over the next 5 years.
7. 70% of women who own crypto are HODLers
Of the 24% of women who own crypto, about 70% say they are HODLers. This means more women crypto investors hold their digital coins long term.
8. 57% of women say they invest in crypto to increase their wealth
About 20% of female crypto investors are traders, but a bigger number prefer to hodl. But most see crypto as a way to increase their wealth with 57% giving this outlook and 44% saying crypto offers a chance to gain financial freedom.
9. 40% of women consider saving as a goal for investing in crypto
Apart from buying crypto or investing in it as part of creating wealth, more women also view cryptocurrency as a good way to save. Indeed, 40% of women crypto investors say saving is their goal, compared to 27.4% of men who said they had the same goal.
10. 50% of women crypto users have a bachelor or master’s degree
Research shows that more women (50%) hold a bachelor or master’s degree, higher than the 37% of males. However, given the small percentage of women in crypto in general, the vast majority of crypto jobs requiring the above qualifications still go to men.
11. Nearly a quarter of women investing in crypto have an annual income of $25-$49K
According to research, 75% of women who invest in or trade crypto have an annual income below $100,000. Respondents in a recent poll noted the distribution as 23% for those with $25,000-$49,000 and 31% for those with an annual income of $50,000-$99,000. About 21% of women who invest in crypto reported earning less than $24,000 per year.
12. Bitcoin, Dogecoin and Ethereum are the most popular assets among women crypto investors
Of the 24% of women who own crypto, 71% invest in or have bought Bitcoin. The benchmark crypto is not the only popular crypto among women though. 42% of women hold Dogecoin and 18% own Ethereum.
Women in crypto careers
13. Less than 5% of crypto founders are women
Less than 5% of crypto founders at top crypto companies are women, according to a recent survey. As of 2022, the number of female founded cryptocurrency companies stood around 292, out of over 10,000 companies. Going by the statistic, female founders make up just less than 5% of crypto companies.
14. Only 5 of top 121 crypto companies have female co-founders
Of the top 121 crypto companies, only 5 count women co-founders – with these being Binance, Bakkt, Yield Guild Games and Blockstream and the recently bankrupt BlockFi. The same gap exists among crypto fund partners where women account for less than 10%.
15. Women account for about 26.5% of crypto jobs
As with the broader crypto sector, the number of women holding crypto jobs is significantly lower than that of men. According to a report from early 2022, the share of women working in crypto and blockchain was 26.5%, down from 30% a year ago. In comparison, women hold roughly 43% of all jobs in the banking and investment sector.
16. Crypto jobs hires for women increased 35% between 2019 and 2021
While men outnumber women in crypto jobs across the industry, job openings have increased significantly since 2019. According to a LinkedIn report on crypto job hires, the number of women hired across crypto rose by 35% from 2019 to 2021. But male hires still outpaced females at 90% growth within the same period.
17. 10% of women consider crypto a promising career sector
With crypto-related job hires jumping nearly 400% in 2021, women’s interest in careers within the sector went up. As per the report, at least one in 10 women respondents said in a new survey that they viewed crypto and blockchain as a sector that offers promising careers.
18. 15% of women aged 18-65 years are interested a career in crypto
A survey of over 1,000 female Americans aged 18-65 years revealed that 15% of women were interested in crypto jobs. Another 10% said they considered applying for a job in 2022.
19. Nearly half of women in crypto use friends and family to find crypto jobs
Close to half of women looking for crypto jobs say they seek the help of their friends and family. The 49% of women who take this approach outnumber those who use job boards, LinkedIn and Twitter among other channels.
Prominent and record-breaking women in crypto
20. Binance co-founder Yi He currently heads the largest crypto VC with $7.5 billion in assets
Binance co-founder Yi He is one of the most prominent women in crypto. The head of Binance Labs since August 2022, He is currently the top person at a crypto VC that’s probably the largest in the industry with total assets of $7.5 billion.
21. Katie Haun’s $1.5 billion holds the record for a debut fund by a solo female VC
Katie Haun, a crypto investor formerly with Andreessen Horowitz, holds the record for the largest ever debut fund by a female VC. Her $1.5 billion new fund announced in March 2022 surpassed the $1.25 billion record set by Mary Meeker. The former investment banker raised the funding for her firm Bond Capital in 2019.
22. US senator Cynthia Lummis bought her first Bitcoin in 2013 at $330 per token
Senator Cynthia Lummis is one of the most prominent supporters of crypto in the US Senate, and she bought her first Bitcoin in 2013 for $330 per BTC. The Wyoming senator known in crypto as the ‘Bitcoin Lady’ disclosed in October 2021 that she had added bitcoin worth $50,000-$100,000 in August. Lummis has helped draft bills seeking to help with the regulation of the crypto sector.
23. Victoria Hansen was the world’s first Bitcoin ATM user in 2013 buying Bitcoin worth $200
The world’s first Bitcoin ATM went live in a coffee shop in downtown Vancouver, Canada on 30 October 2013. According to a report by the Intelligencer, Victoria Hansen became the very first user of the automated crypto teller machine when she bought Bitcoin worth $200 at around 9.00 am local time on that day.
24. UFC fighter Luana Pinheiro is the first woman to be paid in Bitcoin
Luana Pinheiro, a Brazilian UFC fighter, became the first woman to get paid in Bitcoin. This followed a partnership between the athlete and payments provider Bitwage sealed in July 2022.
25. Erika Rasure founded Crypto Goddess, the first women-focused platform for learning about crypto investing in 2022
In 2022, Dr. Erika Rasure founded Crypto Goddess, a women-focused learning community that aims to help women learn how to invest in crypto and blockchain. Rasure is a globally-recognised cryptocurrency expert and member of Investopedia’s Financial Review Board.
The takeaway
Cryptocurrency is a fast-growing ecosystem and continues to give more opportunities not just for investors, but also for entrepreneurs. The sector is also offering lucrative job openings. However, the industry is still overly male-dominated and the inequality is evident across the number of female crypto investors globally compared to men despite the 35% growth in female crypto investors since 2019.
Statistics also show there are far fewer women founders in crypto, and where there are at the top end of the sector, they are only co-founders. Opening up crypto jobs to more women and offering greater openings for venture funding could be one step to helping narrow the gap.