Crypto: Younger Americans Back Crypto As Boomers Favor Traditional Banks:...

With Boomers controlling more than half of US household wealth, the coming generational transfer may funnel a portion of this capital into crypto markets, a new OKX survey shows.

Younger Americans are growing more confident in crypto, while older generations remain firmly aligned with traditional finance, according to a new survey published as part of the OKX Insights series.

The survey, which polled 1,000 Americans in January, found a sharp generational divide in trust, outlook and expectations for digital assets. The younger the respondent, the more likely they were to view crypto as both credible today and central to finance tomorrow.

When asked how much they trust crypto platforms, 40% of Gen Z (aged 12–29) and 41% of Millennials (aged 29–45) gave high confidence scores, rating their trust at seven or above on a 10-point scale. Among Baby Boomers (aged between their late 50s and late 70s), just 9% did the same, making younger generations almost five times more trusting than their older counterparts.

Related: Crypto to Handle 10% of Post-Trades by 2030: Citi Survey

Confidence among younger participants is also rising over time. Compared with January 2025, 36% of Gen Z and 34% of Millennials reported increased trust in crypto platforms. Among Boomers, sentiment was largely unchanged, with nearly half saying their views had not shifted and only 6% reporting greater confidence.

Looking ahead to 2026, trading plans mirror the same sentiment. Forty percent of Gen Z and 36% of Millennials plan to increase their crypto activity this year, compared with 11% of Boomers, a nearly fourfold difference in bullishness.

“The trust gap is fundamentally about how different generations define trust,” an OKX spokesperson said, noting that Boomers tend to associate financial trust with institutional approval and regulatory oversight, while Gen Z and younger Millennials place greater value on verification, transparency and direct control.

“Regulation matters more to Boomers because their trust model is strongly tied to oversight and institutional legitimacy,” the spokesperson said. “So clearer rules and improved regulatory frameworks can help reduce hesitation, especially around consumer protection, custody standards, and market integrity,” they added.

Related: 60% of crypto investors are young, educated and invest under $10K — Survey

Source: CoinTelegraph