BTC Markets’ Investor Study Report 2025, released this week, has outlined how Australian businesses and institutions are quietly building cryptocurrency into their long-term strategies.
Drawing on both proprietary trading data and a nationally representative survey, outgoing CEO of BTC Markets, Caroline Bowler, said the company’s fourth cryptocurrency report demonstrates solidifying investor confidence in the sector.
“Our report shows Australians increasingly view digital assets as a long-term strategy.
“Businesses, institutions and private investors are actively exploring practical applications, and with clearer regulation on the horizon, the sector is poised for meaningful development,” Bowler said.
She pointed to how major financial institutions across the world, including Zodia Custody, State Street, Goldman Sachs, and JP Morgan Asset Management (JPMAM), are all making decisive moves into digital asset infrastructure and offerings.
For instance, JPMAM has been advancing its digital asset strategy with the launch of deposit token JPMD, while Standard Chartered became the first globally systematic important bank to offer spot trading in bitcoin and Ethereum to institutional clients in July this year.
Closer to home, Bowler highlighted AMP as the first superannuation fund to publicly invest in cryptocurrency via bitcoin futures in May 2024. The firm has since stated it is also open to investing in cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds in the future.
For Bowler’s part, she said these developments show that digital assets are no longer on the fringe, but are instead becoming an everyday part of the financial mainstream.
“We are seeing real momentum in retail-facing crypto products across superannuation and banking.
“By 2026, Australia’s major financial institutions will be offering crypto to everyday investors,” she said.
Regulatory setbacks
Bowler attributed this prediction to the increasing momentum around cryptocurrency regulation, noting that other jurisdictions are following the White House’s lead after President Donald Trump’s re-election late last year led to a revised approach to cryptocurrency.
“Globally, the digital asset race is moving ahead full throttle, with institutions and governments making bold moves.”
However, she argued that despite the increasing adoption of cryptocurrency in Australia, momentum around regulations has not kept pace with the rest of the world.
“Now is the time for decisive regulatory action to secure our position and empower informed participation,” she said.
BTC Markets highlighted how ASIC’s Consultation Paper 381, which addresses cryptocurrency asset licensing, has not yet received a formal response since February 2025. This, it noted, “contrasts with rapid regulatory developments overseas” into cryptocurrency regulation.
Other industry participants have similarly urged the Australian government to pick up the pace on domestic cryptocurrency legislation, particularly after the consultation period for the draft digital asset bill concluded late last week.
Trading increases
Overall, the report found that the average value per trade on the BTC Markets platform increased by 25 per cent over the year, suggesting investors are allocating more capital and doing so with purpose.
Daily trades also rose by 17 per cent, indicating that investors are actively participating and adapting to market changes to maintain their strategies.
Interestingly, for the first time, older Australians, women, and self-managed super funds emerged as the leading adopters of the asset class.
Meanwhile, for the first time in five years, XRP surpassed bitcoin as the most traded asset on BTC Markets in 2025.
“XRP is designed for fast, low-cost international payments and has long been favoured by institutional players and retail users seeking practical use cases,” Bowler said.
The report also found that Solana volumes spiked 69 per cent on the back of strong retail interest. Despite this, bitcoin continues to be the most held asset, with 68 per cent of investors surveyed for the report confirming ownership.
Between December 2023 and June 2025, corporate players on the exchange increased their bitcoin allocations by 138 per cent, in line with global trends, with companies like MicroStrategy and Tesla using cryptocurrency as part of their capital management mix.
“These trading patterns are further evidence of the market’s evolution,” Bowler said.
