South Korea, known for its tech-savvy populace and a strong inclination towards crypto investments, has thrown a new trend into the spotlight concerning XRP.

A recent report from the South Korean news outlet News1 Korea indicates that the nation’s Generation Z (GenZ) displays a marked preference for altcoins, most notably XRP, over the more established giants like Bitcoin and Ethereum.

GenZ’s Shift To Altcoins

The report undertook a detailed study of investment data on Bithumb, one of South Korea’s leading crypto exchanges. The findings from this analysis illuminate the distinctive investment behaviors of different age groups, especially emphasizing the choices made by GenZ investors.

The investment propensity based on age revealed that GenZ or those in their 20s are more inclined towards “aggressive” investment proneness. This emerging generation of investors is displaying a pronounced preference for altcoins, alternatives to the dominant cryptos such as Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH).

In this study, Bitcoin and Ethereum are categorized as “long-term” and “stable investments” owing to their perceived low volatility in the market.

The report reveals that roughly 82.5% of GenZ investors have poured their money into altcoins, excluding ETH. But it’s XRP that stands out amongst the crowd. Approximately one in five GenZ investors, or 20.7% to be precise, have chosen this token as their primary altcoin for investment.

The Larger Context And XRP’s Role In It

This surge in the altcoin’s popularity among younger South Korean investors is juxtaposed with a contrasting trend for the slightly older age bracket.

Investors in their 30s were found to have a higher affinity for Bitcoin and Ethereum. It suggests that while GenZ is more open to exploring newer and potentially riskier altcoins, the previous generation is still aligned mainly with the tried and tested crypto leaders.

Further shedding light on this trend, a crypto derivatives platform Bitget report stated that nearly half of the crypto copy traders on the exchange belong to the GenZ demographic. 

Speaking of the token, Crypto lawyer John Deaton has recently explained that the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) legal tussle with Ripple over the XRP token may have significantly set the altcoin’s trajectory back in the US market by three years.

You could NEVER underestimate the damage the SEC’s lawsuit has caused – NOT ONLY AGAINST RIPPLE – BUT #XRP. THREE YEARS OF ADOPTION – that’s what it’s caused.

Just how long is 3 yrs – in crypto years?

People seem to forget how much Coinbase promoted #XRP before the lawsuit.… https://t.co/1fZ3r8WCSd pic.twitter.com/GLu4kFUU38

— John E Deaton (@JohnEDeaton1) August 22, 2023

Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency currently trades for $0.52, up by 1.9% over the past 24 hours, with a 24-hour trading volume of $1 billion.

Featured image from Unsplash, Chart from TradingView