Aussie investors still favor bitcoin while newer memecoins gain popularity: Kraken

Cryptocurrency exchange Kraken said that Australian investors prefer to trade bitcoin, while newer memecoins, including Pepe and Dogwifhat, also gained traction among Australian users.

In a Tuesday analysis of millions of Australian wallets on the exchange, Kraken said that bitcoin remained the most traded cryptocurrency between May 2023 and May 2024, the exchange said in a statement shared with The Block. Bitcoin accounted for about 27.07% of all trading volumes in Australia in the period, which is slightly higher than the global average of 26.46%.

Solana was the second most traded crypto in Australia, constituting 10.02% of all trading volume during the period, compared to 7.81% for non-Australian users. Ether came in third, which made up about 9.66% of all Australian trading volume, compared to 9.93% globally, according to the analysis.

“The introduction of new trading pairs such as SOL/AUD is a direct response to the demands of our Australian customers,” said Jonathon Miller, managing director of Kraken Australia and rest of world said. “It is great to see the enthusiasm Australians are showing towards new meme coins, which are a fun and increasingly popular part of the crypto ecosystem. Australians are no stranger to venturing off the beaten track, a trait useful when navigating this ever-evolving asset class.”

The report also found that Australian investors are more likely to hold newer memecoins, including Pepe, Wif and Bonk, over other established memecoins such as Doge. 

About 2.65% of users in Australia hold Pepe, almost doubling the global average of 1.49%, while about 1.58% fo Aussie investors hold Wif, compared to a global average of 0.45%, the report showed.