It’s beginning to look a lot like Cryptmas. But will Santa bring you “sick gainz”, or lumps of digital coal? A recent survey has found more than a quarter of Australian crypto users are planning crypto-related gifts this festive season.

Let’s just hope you don’t find some pump-and-dump dog coin under the tree, eh? Still, might prove more captivating than a pair of socks. (Unless you receive this “Unisocks” NFT, that is, currently selling for more than US$113K.)

So here’s the deal… the survey was conducted in October by the fast-growing, Singapore-based crypto wallet and services provider Crypto.com (recently promoted by actor Matt Damon), which polled 2,020 Australians aged 18-59.

It showed that 26 per cent of Aussie crypto users intend to buy crypto-centric presents for their loved ones and friends this year.

We’re talking crypto tokens such as Bitcoin and Ethereum; crypto merchandise such as hoodies and T-shirts… or maybe even something more “out there”, like this…

More than half of those looking to buy crypto gifts said they would consider purchasing actual crypto assets, while about 43 per cent said they were planning to buy crypto merch.

“Australians are clearly very keen to adopt cryptocurrencies and integrate their use into day-to-day spending,” said Karl Mohan, General Manager for Asia-Pacific at Crypto.com, adding that Aussies are “gradually increasing their use of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology.”

 

HOdl, HOdl, HOdl: key survey takeaways…

• 26% of respondents plan to buy crypto-centric Christmas gifts this holiday season.

• 53% of those surveyed will buy actual crypto assets as presents, while 43% will buy crypto merch instead.

• About 42% are considering buying non-fungible tokens (NFTs), such as art or gaming-related tokens.

• Nearly 8% said they will use crypto or a crypto-linked card to pay for Christmas gifts this year.

• More than 60% of respondents agreed that crypto has alternative uses other than simply being part of an investment portfolio.

• 65% rated crypto as most useful for making local or international payments; 41% rated it most highly as a store of value.

• 35.5% rated crypto’s best use case as a yield generator through “staking” – a form of interest earned from stored crypto holdings.

• One in four Australians currently own at least one NFT, while 21% of those surveyed are looking to jump on the bandwagon.

• Eight in 10 respondents said security was an important factor when choosing where to buy crypto, while 78% said low fees takes precedence.

 

In September, a separate survey, conducted by comparison site Finder suggested that about one in six Australians now own some form of cryptocurrency. And in October, Finder’s research also showed that Australia has the third-highest rate of crypto ownership in the world (behind Nigeria and Malaysia).

 

Staples Center to be renamed Crypto.com Arena

And back on the subject of crypto and Christmas… it looks like Crypto.com knows what it’s gifting itself…

The Staples Center arena in Los Angeles, which is home to the LA Lakers and LA Clippers NBA teams, will be renamed Crypto.com Arena on Christmas Day, according to a press release.

The Singaporean crypto exchange has bought the naming rights for a 20-year period… for a whopping US$700 million. It’s said to be one of the biggest naming-rights deals in sports history.

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