TLDR
- Wealthy Asian investors are increasing their crypto holdings to 5% of their portfolios.
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Family offices in Hong Kong, Singapore, and China are leading the shift to crypto assets.
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Crypto exchanges report higher trading volumes amid growing institutional demand in Asia.
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Asia has seen a significant rise in institutional and professional crypto market activity.
High-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) across Asia are expanding their investments into cryptocurrency, with some planning to allocate as much as 5% of their portfolios to digital assets. This trend is being driven by a growing interest in crypto, particularly from wealth managers in Singapore, Hong Kong, and mainland China. Wealth managers have reported an increasing number of inquiries from clients looking to include cryptocurrency as part of their diversified investment portfolios. As cryptocurrency adoption broadens, both retail and institutional investors in Asia are making larger allocations to crypto.
This shift represents a significant change in how wealthy investors in Asia are approaching digital assets. While the region has long been home to large numbers of retail investors, institutional and high-net-worth participation is now on the rise. The growth of crypto funds and new trading volumes is a direct result of this increasing demand from wealthy individuals and family offices.
Rising Crypto Interest in Asia Wealthy Families
The trend is particularly noticeable in family offices across major Asian hubs like Singapore, Hong Kong, and China. These family offices, which typically manage the wealth of affluent families, are exploring new opportunities in the digital economy. UBS, the Swiss investment bank, pointed out that some overseas Chinese family offices are now allocating about 5% of their portfolios to cryptocurrencies. The bank also noted that second- and third-generation family members are more engaged in digital assets, signaling a generational shift in investment preferences.
Jason Huang, the founder of NextGen Digital Venture, reported raising over $100 million for a new long-short crypto equity fund in Singapore in just a few months.
This trend is reinforced by the growing interest from crypto exchanges, with several exchanges reporting increased trading volumes and a steady rise in new crypto funds. Wealthy investors are no longer only interested in the technology but are actively seeking investment opportunities that include cryptocurrency exposure.
Crypto Adoption Surges with Institutional Interest
Until recently, the cryptocurrency boom in Asia was primarily driven by retail investors. However, new data suggests that institutional and professional investors are now playing a significant role. According to Chainalysis, the region’s crypto market saw more than $750 billion in inflows from mid-2023 to mid-2024, making up 16.6% of global cryptocurrency trading volume.
This surge in inflows has been largely driven by retail users making smaller transactions, but it is now also being bolstered by institutional participation, especially in South Korea and Hong Kong.
Exchanges such as Hong Kong’s HashKey Exchange reported an 85% increase in registered users year-over-year as of August 2025, underscoring the growing appetite for digital assets in the region. Similarly, major South Korean exchanges saw a 17% increase in trading volumes, with daily trading up by over 20%. This institutional demand is propelling the shift toward greater market efficiency and paving the way for the widespread use of crypto as an asset class.
East Asia and Its Shift Toward Crypto as a Store of Value
The shift in Asia’s crypto market is particularly visible in East Asia. South Korea and Hong Kong have seen massive growth in crypto activity, largely driven by professional traders and wealthy individuals using crypto as a store of value.
In Hong Kong, the approval of several Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in 2024 spurred institutional interest, further supporting the region’s growing crypto market. Similarly, in South Korea, altcoins and stablecoins remain popular among traders, with many using crypto as a hedge against inflation and market instability.
China has also seen a surge in OTC and P2P crypto activity, especially after the 2021 ban on exchanges. Wealthy Chinese citizens are increasingly using crypto to preserve assets and facilitate cross-border transactions. As traditional investment vehicles like real estate and stocks face challenges, cryptocurrency has become an attractive alternative for many high-net-worth individuals in the region.
