The Global Crypto Adoption Index released its report on the top markets with the highest adoption rates across the world. Indonesia is in seventh place, below India which is the world’s number one market in crypto usage, as well as Vietnam, and the Philippines, which are nations with incredibly strong crypto penetration. Interestingly, eight of the top ten in the list are emerging markets, while six of those are countries in Central and South-East Asia.
Crypto adoption is generally high in emerging markets, which is somehow odd considering that cryptos are leveraging the latest technologies and digital advancements and one would expect that they would be more popular in developed economies.
In developed markets, digital literacy is considerably higher and technology penetration is more dense, compared to emerging markets and this is why overall it would be more natural to see cryptos becoming mainstream in these countries. The truth, though, is that emerging nations are demonstrating greater adoption and they are paving the fate of cryptos in the future, whether crypto-usage involves exchanges, trading, or betting Indonesia and everywhere else in the region.
There are five main reasons why emerging countries such as Indonesia constitute the fastest-growing crypto markets.
Reducing risks of corruption
First, it is the fact that blockchain technology and the smart contracts, pertinent to the use of cryptos, allow for greater transparency, less corruption, and much more reliability in transactions or any other activities implemented with cryptos.
Emerging nations are generally suffering from corruption in their banking systems or they have online banking systems that can’t reach the entire population. The problem of corruption or the gap in supply, has been addressed by cryptos, which guarantee safer transactions and availability to the users.
Wide range of applications in gambling and gaming, which are very popular in emerging markets
Second, it is that cryptocurrencies have a wide range of applications, already, which means that people can use them for several purposes. In Indonesia, the most popular applications of cryptos are for exchanges and gaming.
In fact, cryptos are used by more and more punters for online betting in Indonesia, which comes after the Philippines and Vietnam in total volume of gaming and gambling. Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin or Ethereum are preferred by bettors and gamblers in these markets, especially since they enable more secure transactions, plus they give people access to global crypto betting platforms.
Younger populations
Besides the existing gap in security and the apparent application of cryptos in gambling, crypto usage rates in emerging markets such as Indonesia or the Philippines, are also high because of their young population.
These countries feature younger populations, who are by nature more prone to innovations, and digital developments and they are more tech-savvy than the aging population of many developed economies.
These younger individuals are more into anything that is pioneering and new and they are generally more willing to adopt new things such as Artificial Intelligence or cryptos.
Less expensive
Another reason for the high crypto adoption in emerging nations is the fact that using cryptos is much cheaper than using other traditional financial services. People in developing markets are often presented with enormous costs for banking, while the opportunity to do transactions with minimal fees becomes a very attractive and appealing choice.
Unbanked
The final reason explaining the high rate of crypto adoption in many emerging countries is that in many cases a big part of the population is “unbanked”. In some markets, there is hardly a consistent banking system and people don’t have access to financial services or credit cards. Meanwhile, in these very same markets, technology is fast pacing and the internet penetration is impressive.
So, for people in these markets, it is much easier to gain access to cryptos than to financial institutions and banking services. If they only need a smartphone and an internet connection to get their hands on cryptocurrencies, then it is clear that they will opt for that.
