Crypto Spreading Across Wealthy in Singapore, Hong Kong: KPMG

Big Four accounting firm KPMG has indicated big interest in the crypto market from the wealthy elite of Singapore and Hong Kong.

KPMG surveyed 30 family offices and high net worth individuals across both regions for its inaugural Investing in Digital Assets report.

58% reported skin in the crypto game while a further 34% intend to allocate funds to bitcoin, stablecoins and ether, as well as decentralized finance (DeFi) opportunities.

KPMG only gathered responses from investors whose assets under management ranged between US$10 to $500 million. Of the 58% already invested in crypto:

• 100% held bitcoin,
• 87% disclosed ether,
• 60% bought NFTs and other metaverse tokens,
• 47% had DeFi tokens.

Beyond the actual assets, 58% of respondents also said they were investing in crypto service providers including exchanges and software developers.

The study was conducted jointly between KPMG China and financial services company Aspen Digital. Results were taken during the second quarter of this year. At the time, markets across the board were in turmoil due to macroeconomic conditions, such as rising inflation, taking center stage.

KPMG found interest in crypto has mainly been driven by prospects of high returns, portfolio diversification and increased confidence in the market following institutional uptake.

It wasn’t all bullish, though, with respondents stating the industry needs more mature methodologies for valuing crypto, the lack of which has given some investors pause.

Not to mention, most already invested only allocated 5% of their portfolio to the digital asset class, a figure dampened by uncertainty around regulations and accounting standards.

The findings echo crypto exchange Bitstamp’s Crypto Pulse survey in April which found that 80% of institutional investors believe crypto stood poised to overtake traditional investment vehicles within a decade.

KPMG overall found regulatory uncertainty persists as a roadblock for major players across Singapore and Hong Kong, with investors seeking a clear regulatory framework that balances both investor protections and industry growth.

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