Gone are the days when the digital currency market was dominated by youngsters. In South Korea, people investing in virtual currencies increased by more than 50%, as per sources. South Korea’s total population, counted till December 2024, is 51.21 million. Out of this, 9.66 million people have invested in virtual currency. Surprisingly, every one out of fourth investor is 50 or 50+ years old, holding above 1 billion KRW in cryptocurrency. They make approximately half of high-net-worth stockholders. It also highlights mainstream adoption by South Korea.

50 and Over 50 Years Old Individuals Investing in Digital Currency in South Korea

Elderly people in South Korea are finally making use of that generational wealth and smartly tacking digital currency. Crypto is witnessing a bullish trend in South Korea. Ahn Do-je, the Democratic Party’s lawmaker, analyzed five domestic virtual currency exchanges, i.e., Bithumb, Upbit, Korbit, Coine and Gopax on 21st March 2021. The results showed that at the end of last year, (by Septmber 2024 for Korbit) there were total 9,667,023 investors, holding 105.0107 trillion, with tradable accounts at these exchanges. As in 2023, there were only 3,333,439 investors, so South Korea witnessed a 52.6% increase in investors in 2024.

The count increased because people aged 50 and above started investing more. There are 1.75 million investors who age 50, and 636,700 million investors aging 60 and above (in 2023 it was just 371,800 million). The number of investors in their 50s increased by 56.4%, and 52.6% increase in 60 or 60+ aged investors in 2024 as compared to 2023.

Elderly People Winning over 1 billion in Virtual Currency in Korea

The elderly people are becoming big players holding over 1 billion in digital currencies. On average, 50+ aged investors hold 2.15 billion won virtual currency. Out of every two winner is 50+. At the end of 2024, 3,215 (35.2%) investors aging in 50s, 1,817 (19.9%) investors aging in 60s or olders won over 1 billion. Total investors were 9,135 million. Ahn is of the view that minimum restriction should be maintained to protect these investors.

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To conclude, elderly people in South Korea are playing bigger than the youngsters in virtual currency. Bithumb, Upbit, Korbit, Coine and Gopax are five major domestic virtual currencies. Out of total 51.21 million people, 9.66 million investors of virtual currency are 50 or 50+. Thye even hold above 1 billion KRW in cryptocurrency. Particularly, a significant increase in the number of elderly investors was recorded at the end of 2024 as compared to 2023.