The unfavorable crypto market conditions this year did not scare new crypto investors, as reported by a study carried out by the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance. Indeed, user accounts at service providers exceeded 139 million with at least 35 million ID-verified users throughout Q3 (against 85 million and 18 million, respectively, in 2017).
And these figures may improve by the time Q4 data is considered.
In fact, millions of new users entered the ecosystem this year — and those are more likely to undergo KYC (Know Your Customer) procedures. Individuals still constitute the majority of the user base of most service providers, and by individuals we are talking about retail investors, consumers or users seeking a better investment or payment alternative.
However, it should be noted that most users remain passive — only 38% of all users can be considered active. Nonetheless, users are more active than they used to be: an average of 35% of users were considered active in 2016, 37% in 2017 and now 38% in 2018 Q1 — considering that being “active” means simple logins, deposits, trading and withdrawals.
Why it is important
- The surge on the number of users (and of verified users) may express increased popularity of the industry this year, despite the consistent bear market felt in 2018. If the uptrend is kept it could point towards an eventual recovery of the market.
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