Even as XRP encountered considerable upheaval due to escalating regulatory challenges, South Korean investors have remained unfazed. In fact, the asset has emerged as the most preferred one in their portfolios, especially those in their 20s. This is evident by new findings, which show XRP comprising 20.7% of their investments, surpassing the combined 17.5% allocation for Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Overall, the proportion of XRP in the portfolios of individuals in their twenties exceeds that of Bitcoin and Ethereum by approximately 3.2%.

XRP Overtakes BTC in Korea as Preferred Investment

Individuals in this particular age bracket exhibit an inclination towards “aggressive” investing, as opposed to investors from other age demographics in South Korea. It was also found that this cohort of market players displays a preference for altcoins over Bitcoin and Ethereum.

The Bithumb report, which extensively examined data on investor portfolios for this year, highlighted that more than 82% of investors in their twenties lean towards altcoins with greater volatility as compared to the world’s top two crypto-assets.

This is in contrast with the 30-year-old age group, which was found to have the highest investment weighting in Bitcoin and Ethereum at 28.2%, demonstrating varying preferences among the different age groups in the country.

Kim Dong-hwan, CEO of South Korea’s virtual asset specialist Wonderframe, believes investors in their 20s have an investment tendency aimed at short-term profits rather than long-term investments.

Meanwhile, XRP investment ratios across investors in their 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, and other were – 17%, 11.8%, 14.9%, and 13.8%, respectively.

South Korea’s XRP Fixation

The report isn’t surprising since XRP trading activity has been heavily concentrated on South Korean exchanges, with volumes on prominent local crypto exchanges Upbit and Bithumb even exceeding that of Bitcoin and Ethereum at times.

Last year, XRP was ranked the second-most popular crypto-asset in the country after Bitcoin, as per a study conducted by South Korea’s leading crypto exchanges – Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, and Korbit. As such, XRP was found to be more attractive than Ether and Cardano, which stood in third and fourth place, respectively.