Gen Z drives crypto urge, surge

Despite the lack of clarity, adequate laws, and regulators’ concerns, India continues to rank among the top nations in terms of cryptocurrency adoption. More importantly, the investment momentum is shifting from the metros and cities to the rural and semi-urban markets. Even more interesting is the fact that the small investors from the North-Eastern states such as Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, and Meghalaya are driving the craze, urge, surge, and desires. Youngsters, especially those from Gen Z generation, dominate crypto trading. Clearly, crypto is throwing up cryptic conclusions.

Let us start with the Gen Z puzzle. According to a recent report, which analyses the trading of more than 2,00,000 crypto futures traders between January and December 2025, more than 60 per cent of the new traders are in the young 18-25 age bracket. Surprisingly, female participation rose by 20 per cent year-on-year, and women now account for roughly one in eight traders on the Pi42 platform, whose traders were part of the study. “This is no longer a niche phenomenon,” says Tak Lee, CEO & managing partner, Hashed Emergent, which prepared the report, India Web3 Landscape, based on the data.

The youngsters are more active, and trade more frequently. Thus, the trading frequency has surged, and close to 60 per cent of the active users trade daily, a number that went up by a third from 45 per cent earlier. In addition, nearly one in four traders reported profits, which indicates that the savvy and smart youngsters are aware of the investment strategies, and risk management. This is unlike recent reports that found that the majority of derivatives (stock) traders incur huge losses. Since the crypto trip-toes, or traders, make money, they are ultra-confident. Hence, the average trade size has nearly doubled from $1,051 in 2024 to $1,960 in 2025, which hints at conviction-led tactics.

“These trends signal a clear shift in how Indian investors are engaging with crypto derivatives. Even amid ongoing global macro and geopolitical uncertainties, trading activity on the platform has remained resilient, with investors continuing to increase participation, trade sizes, and overall conviction,” says Avinash Shekhar, co-founder & CEO, Pi42. Unlike stocks, where the technicalities seem to confound the investors, including the younger ones, the world of cryptic crypto seems to energise them. Or one can conclude that making money is more difficult in the volatile stock markets, compared to crypto exchanges, where the volatility is steep but less regular.

North-East India has emerged as the fastest-growing region, and now contributes almost a third of retail investors. States such as Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, and Meghalaya lead the trend. It seems surprising that these states, rather than the traditionally-savvy financial states such as Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, and even Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka lag. The outperformance of the North-East may, however, be attributed to several factors. For example, these states have lower penetration of traditional financial products. Hence, crypto offers a first-time, and primary entry point for investments.

Real estate and gold traditionally dominate most regions across the nation, but crypto offers a low-entry, high-liquidity alternative, which is accessible without the intermediaries, who are largely absent or on the lower side in the North-East. In many of these states, there are few and limited number of local wealth managers or brokerage ecosystems. A high proportion of the literate, English-speaking, young, and mobile-first users in the region accelerates the adoption to cryptos, even as Internet access and affordable data expands participation. One can possibly contend that entry barriers in crypto are low.

No one can dispute that the returns from cryptos are higher than other assets, especially stocks. In the past four years, the Sensex gained less than 50 per cent. In comparison, Bitcoin, which ruled below $20,000 went up 6x to a high of $1,20,000, and has now settled at $70,000. In addition, unlike the regular volatility in the stock exchange indices, Bitcoin has seen three massive surges and falls, all of them scary, but hugely profitable if one had the patience and nerves. The risks are high, so are the returns, and Gen Z from the North-East like it.

However, experts warn that this may lead to an imbalance between risks and returns. “Crypto assets are risky, and often extremely volatile, meaning that price swings can be dramatic and unpredictable, leading to a significant risk of losing all your investment. Additionally, investing in crypto requires careful consideration of asset allocation and diversification to manage these risks,” states an AI-generated query. To put this in perspective, in the recent past, Bitcoin has dropped from $1,20,000 to $70,000. In addition, most of Gen Z, across cities, may be more invested in crypto, and do not believe in a balanced portfolio.

Apart from the regional skew, there is a strong change in similar skews within urban cities, and between urban and rural areas. There is a renewed interest in cryptos in Tier 2 and Tier 3 towns. Strong community-led adoption through peer networks, and social channels amplify growth. Today, government-led initiatives, such as affordable smartphones and low-cost data (thanks to players like Reliance Jio), dramatically improve Internet access in such towns, which enables participation in high-frequency products like crypto futures. Limited access to local investment avenues, and a higher risk appetite among the first-time young investors pushes for greater participation.

These regional and city disparities underscore a broader shift that crypto futures trading is no longer metro-centric, but is rapidly gaining traction across emerging parts of the country. “Derivatives are becoming the entry point for a new generation of digitally native investors, and the data suggests that we are still in the early innings of this adoption curve,” says Lee. “We are seeing young, digitally native users adopt more strategic and informed trading approaches, while adoption from emerging regions is accelerating at a strong pace. This momentum reflects a structurally expanding market where derivatives platforms can play a meaningful role in improving accessibility, enabling wider participation, and supporting the long-term growth of India’s digital asset ecosystem,” says Shekhar.

However, one needs to put in a caveat. If the increased interest in crypto is due to mobile-first generation, Internet access, low data costs, low entry barriers, and high return potential, we need to be careful. Global studies show that such factors contribute greatly to the use of social media to disseminate information about the cryptos. While this enthuses the youngsters, and for obvious reasons, it embeds a potential for misinformation, and “potentially harming investment strategies.”