The Bank of Canada recently released the results of their Bitcoin [BTC] Omnibus Survey [BTCOS] which revealed a general uptick in awareness about the coin. The survey was conducted to “understand whether adoption and usage had increased”.
Bitcoin holdings in 2016 vs 2017 | Source: BTCOS
It is worth noting that the survey took place in December of 2017, with the results being published recently. The sample space for the survey was 2623 individuals.
The Bank justifies its interest in cryptocurrency by aiming to explore the effect of interest in Bitcoin. It is also aimed to measure the impact on the current financial system. They stated:
“It is important to understand Bitcoin’s potential impact on how the Bank of Canada undertakes its core functions such as the production and distribution of currency…and to identify the driving reasons for ownership during the sudden rise in Bitcoin prices.”
The survey shows that the awareness in Bitcoin advanced from 64 to 85% in this space from 2016 to 2017. The number one reason for owning Bitcoin was for investment reasons, changing from transactional purposes in the previous year. The report stated:
“Only about half of Bitcoin owners were found to regularly use it to buy goods or services or to send money to other people.”
The highest level of awareness is in British Colombia:
93% of people knew about Bitcoin.
92% knew about cryptocurrency [in citizens with an income of $70000].
Awareness in the area of Quebec rose from 49% to 77% in the time frame, dividing this among men and women:
Awareness of women rose from 54% to 80%.
Awareness of men rose from 75% to 91%
The survey also showed that Bitcoin ownership grew by almost double, from 2.9% to 5.0% in 2017. The survey stated:
“The difference in ownership rates among aware respondents between 2016 and 2017 was not significant, suggesting that much of the increase in ownership was driven by an entrance of newly aware consumers.”
However, it seems that Canadian HODLers bags are small, as 32% of the respondents stated that they hold less than 0.1 BTC, with 34% holding less than 0.05 BTC. Interestingly, 58% of respondents said they held the cryptocurrency as an investment, with 12% saying that they owned it because their friends did too.
Overall, the report presents a picture of raised awareness for Bitcoin [BTC] in Canada. However, mass adoption proponents will be disappointed by the HODLers holding for investment purposes.
source: https://ambcrypto.com/bitcoin-btc-ownership-doubled-canada-last-year-shows-survey/