Despite being in circulation since 2008, much information about Bitcoin remains obscure, and the number of BTC owners is one of such mysteries. Based on Blockchain Technology, BTC is a digital currency unaffiliated with a centralized measure of control such as a Central bank or Government institution.
Most BTC transactions are carried out through online exchanges, which then store the exchanged BTC in an online digital wallet. By design, the transactions on BTC are semi-private. For this reason, knowing who owns a Bitcoin and the total number of owners remains impossible.
A recent study posits that more than 100 million Bitcoin owners exist globally. However, the world as a whole and cryptocurrency had changed since 2019, when this study was conducted and this assumed number was declared.
User privacy makes it near impossible to give a certain number of Bitcoin owners and any other cryptocurrency. Yet, one can make a near-accurate assumption with the help of specific dynamics such as e-wallets, Bitcoin addresses, and users on exchange platforms.
What is The Number of Bitcoin Users?
Because there is no accurate answer to this question, we’ll look into the actual statistics available. Let’s begin with Bitcoin addresses.
The number of BTC addresses is estimated to be roughly 460 million, which once owned more than 0.0 BTC. This, however, does not imply that they are currently active. Actually, 172 million BTC addresses are only known to be involved, meaning they have recently transacted BTC. This strikes out 288 million addresses that haven’t transacted any BTC in a long time.
The analysis becomes more complex when we know that exchanges, merchants, Bitcoin services, etc., own 147 million addresses. Thus the number of Private users who own Bitcoin is around 25 million.
Nonetheless, the amount of Bitcoin addresses that Private users own is not the same as the number of people who hold Bitcoin. For clarification, you must first understand a BTC address and what it does.
, a BTC address can be described as the numerical identification for your BTC wallet. It contains several characters from 26-35 that Bitcoin traders provide during a transaction.
However, it is likely for one individual to have more than one BTC address. For example, a person’s smartphone can be connected to one wallet while their PC Is connected to another. This occurrence isn’t merely possible; it is inevitably common. In addition, there is no limit to the number of addresses.
Another complexity concerning this issue is that BTC platforms keep Bitcoin that belongs to different owners in the same address. A platform can have up to 100,000 BTC stored in one address and may belong to thousands of people.
How Many Bitcoin Wallets Exist?
Let’s briefly break down what a Bitcoin wallet is used for before we go further with this question. Bitcoin wallets are software applications where the transactions for your Bitcoin are entirely recorded and store private and public keys. There are different types of Bitcoin wallets, such as mobile-based wallets, desktop apps, web wallets, hardware devices, and paper wallets.
In line with the most recent statistics on cryptocurrency, the number of e-wallets in March 2021 amounted to over 70 million. This amount of Bitcoin wallets indicates how many people use e-wallets to execute BTC transactions. Yet, there is also a minute portion of users who own BTC on exchange platforms only or don’t use e-wallets for BTC transactions.
From the number of downloads on the globe’s most common Bitcoin platforms, such as Trust, Lino, Blockchain Wallet, Binance, Coinbase, Coinbase Wallet, Bitcoin Wallet, and Crypto.com, the number of e-wallet users went up in 2021.
How Many People Own Bitcoin In America?
Following a recent study completed by the New York Digital Investment Group, the number of Americans who own Bitcoin is 46 million. Already 17% of the adult population in the United States will likely increase shortly due to the increased Bitcoin adoption by Americans. Another fact showcased by the same study is that 75% of their research participants were interested in learning more about BTC life insurance and annuities.
In another research carried out by Mastercard on 15,000 participants from 18 countries, it was revealed that the generation that owns the most Bitcoin more than any other is the Millennials. This research revealed that 80% of millennials want to learn how Bitcoin transactions are executed before they start using it. Another 75% of the respondents claimed that if they knew more about how crypto worked, they would create a Bitcoin account and begin using cryptos.
Who Owns The Largest Amount of Bitcoin?
From what we can draw from our research, Satoshi Nakamoto is believed to be the largest holder of Bitcoin. He is said to have no less than one million Bitcoin. Although, this number has not been officially confirmed. He’s followed by Micree Zhan, a co-owner of Bitmain, a Bitcoin mining company based in China. Third in line will be Chris Larsen, Ripple’s co-founder and co-founder of many tech startups.
FAQs
Who Is The Owner Of Bitcoin?
There is no single owner of Bitcoin, and Satoshi Nakamoto invented it as a decentralized and public entity, which means that no single person or authority controls the flow or administration of Bitcoin. As of now, many people are involved in the Bitcoin project’s development.
How Many Bitcoins Are Left?
According to estimates, about three million Bitcoins are currently left to be mined.
How Many Individuals Own Bitcoin?
This question poses a complex problem because there’s no precise answer to the number of people who own Bitcoin. However, some studies point to the possibility of this number being between 20.5 million addresses that own 1 BTC or more. Yet, this isn’t a definite answer to this question because an individual can have multiple Bitcoin addresses on different e-wallets.
Is Bitcoins Legitimate?
Bitcoins are legal in various countries. Many countries, such as Japan, the UK, and the US, have adopted bitcoins as lawful means of exchange.
