Bitcoin holders top 500 million as mainstream asset threshold questioned

Global bitcoin holders have been tallied at more than 500 million.

On Sept. 1 (local time), blockchain media outlet U.Today reported that cryptocurrency analyst Willy Woo (윌리 우) estimated bitcoin ownership had risen to 4.5 to 6 percent of the world’s population.

Citing Glassnode and Chainalysis indicators, Woo put the total holder base at 370 million to 500 million. He also assessed that bitcoin’s adoption speed is following an S-shaped innovation adoption curve similar to the early spread of the internet. This is read as a sign that bitcoin has moved beyond an early experimental phase and entered a shift toward a mass asset.

Distribution by country was uneven. India had the largest number of holders at 68 million, but that was 4.6 percent of its population. The United States followed with 50 million and recorded the highest penetration rate among major economies at 14 percent. China remained third with 33 million despite regulatory constraints.

Adoption rates relative to population were higher in Southeast Asia and emerging markets. Vietnam was tallied at 17 percent and the Philippines at 14 percent. Argentina at 15 percent and Turkey at 14 percent were also high. In these countries, retail investors are using digital assets as a way to avoid local inflation risks and bypass capital controls.