At the end of November, the Dow, plummeted 650 points in one day. Other American markets largely soon followed suit. This slump is generally attributed to rising concerns over what effect the Omicron variant of the coronavirus may have on the economy, but is also likely coupled with the continued rise of inflation rates, uncertainty around the supply chain crisis in the face of the holiday season, and other lingering economic factors.

It’s only natural then that serious and casual investors alike may be anxious over the value of their stock market investments. These sorts of economic cycles, and especially this current potential downturn, have more and more people looking at cryptocurrency as an alternative to ride out the financial waves. 

In fact, over the last six months, the percentage of the Gen Pop who invest in cryptocurrency (or would if they could) as a long-term growth investment has jumped from 23% to 30%, while those who invest to avoid adverse economic conditions has also risen from 9% to 16%. All other reasons show a flat or downward trajectory.  

Also of note, is the percentage of those interested in cryptocurrencies in general.

Those not interested at all with blockchain tech continue to decline, from 80% in May of this year, to 68% currently. 

This general growth may all be a result of cryptocurrency’s continued mainstream acceptance and rising profile. So much so, in fact, that we see some potential investors opting for crypto over traditional stocks, when given the choice. 

And that number has only grown since CivicScience started tracking the sentiment in May of this year. 

More recently, in fact, some investors have begun selling off some of their stock assets to purchase cryptocurrency.

And when we cross this information against the kind of market observer, we see that it’s serious investors that are swapping out their assets, much more so than casual ones. 

Though that isn’t to say that investors are taking large risks with their financial assets in cryptocurrency. Among those who have sold at least some stock to buy crypto, 66% have kept the amount under a quarter of their total assets. 

However, the data shows that over one-fifth of investors have sold more than half of their stock assets in order to buy cryptocurrency – a shockingly significant number. And diving deeper into the data, we see this number is largely driven by those who very closely follow financial markets and the economy. 

Perhaps dedicated investors know something the general public doesn’t about cryptocurrency, or perhaps they are simply more risk-tolerant than their less financially focused counterparts. 

And while there was a time, about six months ago, where concerns began to rise regarding the effect statements public figures made about crypto had on its value (such as Elon Musk joking about Dogecoin in April), those worries have seemed allay as the blockchain tech continues its march towards the mainstream. 

So, while the volatility of cryptocurrency is still an issue, the technology as an asset continues to be further embraced by the investing class, implying that broad acceptance by the general population is only a short time away.