The number of cryptocurrency millionaires worldwide has grown by 40% following a big rally in digital assets over the past year.
According to the latest “Crypto Wealth Report” from Henley & Partners, the global number of individuals with $1 million U.S. or more in crypto wealth has reached 241,700, up 40% over the last 12 months.
The surge in crypto millionaires coincides with a big rally that lifted the market capitalization of digital assets to $3.3 trillion U.S. in June of this year.
Prices for digital assets such as Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) gained a combined 45% over the last year, according to the report.
Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, remains the main driver of wealth creation in the cryptocurrency sector.
Additionally, Henley & Partners reports that 450 individuals now hold at least $100 million U.S. or more in cryptocurrency, while 36 billionaires’ control even larger stakes in digital tokens.
The report also points to a change in how digital assets are used, with Bitcoin increasingly treated as collateral rather than as a speculative investment.
Henley & Partners writes that cryptocurrencies are evolving into a parallel financial system.
“Bitcoin is becoming the foundation of a parallel financial system, where [it] is not merely an investment for speculation on fiat price appreciation, but the base currency for accumulating wealth,” reads the report.
Cryptocurrency is also shifting patterns of global wealth, with Singapore, Hong Kong, the U.S., and Switzerland the top destinations for digital asset investors.
With over $14 trillion U.S. in wealth moving across borders last year, the report argues that cryptocurrency’s portability and decentralized nature mark a break from traditional finance.
Bitcoin is currently trading at $111,600 U.S.
