Survey Finds Financial Advisers Reluctant to Recommend Crypto to Clients

Not sold on cryptocurrency yet?

You’re in good company.

Financial advisers remain conflicted about putting their clients into the digital asset sector.

In a survey of 600 financial advisers, 15% said they allocated a portion of their clients’ portfolios in crypto last year.

While the numbers are up from 9% in 2020 and a 6% in 2019, the poll tells us 85% of advisers are steering clear of cryptocurrencies.

Among the key findings: Advisors allocating to cryptocurrencies increased by more than 65%; 14% of advisors said they will probably or definitely allocate crypto in 2022; and 94% of advisors said they received questions from clients about crypto in 2021, up from 81% the year before.

The survey also revealed nearly equal numbers of advisors said their desire to allocate to crypto equities is 46% compared crypto assets like bitcoin at 45%.

The poll was conducted in January by BitWise Asset Management, the San Francisco-based crypto asset management company, and ETF Trends, the Irvine, California source for information on exchange-traded funds.

Survey respondents included independent investment advisors, broker-dealers and financial planners in the United States. It’s the fourth consecutive year that Bitwise and ETF Trends have partnered on the survey.

Earlier this month, PYMNTS reported bitcoin, blockchain and cryptocurrency are words that most people have heard since the sector entered the mainstream last year. PYMNTS has published a collection of stories that examine the industry.

See the series:

PYMNTS Crypto Basics Series: What’s a Blockchain and How Does It Work?

PYMNTS Crypto Basics Series: What’s a Consensus Mechanism and Why Is It Destroying the Planet?

PYMNTS Crypto Basics Series: What’s A Crypto Wallet And How You Can Avoid Losing A Quarter Billion Dollars?

PYMNTS Crypto Basics Series: What’s A Permissioned Blockchain and How Does Centralized Decentralization Work?

PYMNTS Crypto Basics Series: How To Lose Your Crypto Without Being Hacked