European crypto investors have ranked digital assets above traditional retirement accounts as a way to build lasting wealth, according to an October 29 OKX survey that found a different preference among American respondents.
Summary
- An OKX survey found that 19% of European respondents preferred crypto for lasting wealth, compared with 8% choosing retirement accounts.
- U.S. respondents favored retirement accounts at 21%, while 12% selected cryptocurrencies.
- Real estate remained the most popular wealth-building asset, attracting 34% of respondents across all five countries.
- Nearly half of European respondents planned to increase their cryptocurrency investments over the next five years.
- Separate U.S. retirement research found that 77% of Americans considered crypto investments in workplace retirement plans risky.
According to OKX’s latest research, 19% of European respondents selected cryptocurrencies as an asset associated with long-term wealth, compared with 8% who chose retirement plans. In the United States, retirement accounts attracted 21% of responses, while cryptocurrencies received 12%.
The survey covered 1,932 adults aged 18 to 88 who had previously invested in cryptocurrencies. Pollfish conducted the research between October 14 and 18 across the United States, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Poland. Its findings describe the preferences of existing crypto investors, not the general population.
European crypto investors favor digital assets, but property remains first
Real estate remained the leading choice across the five countries, with 34% of respondents identifying land or property as the asset most associated with lasting wealth. Cryptocurrency and retirement accounts attracted smaller shares when researchers combined responses from Europe and the United States.
The difference became clearer when the survey separated participants by region. European respondents placed cryptocurrency ahead of retirement accounts by 11 percentage points, while their American counterparts preferred retirement savings by nine points.
Among Generation Z participants, cryptocurrencies ranked as the most popular individual asset choice, with nearly one-quarter selecting digital assets. The research further found that around one-third of all respondents considered cryptocurrency wealth just as legitimate as wealth accumulated through stocks or real estate.
However, the survey did not establish that European investors were abandoning pension contributions or replacing retirement savings with cryptocurrencies. Participants were asked which assets they associated with lasting wealth, a different measure from their actual investment allocations.
The survey’s focus on people with previous cryptocurrency experience limits how far its findings can be applied to the wider European and American populations.
Younger investors plan to increase their crypto holdings
Beyond current preferences, OKX examined how respondents expected their cryptocurrency allocations to change during the next five years.
Across all age groups, 51% planned to invest more in crypto, while approximately 34% expected to maintain their current allocations. Another 13% anticipated reducing their exposure or leaving the market.
In Europe, 47% intended to increase their holdings, including 13% planning a substantial rise. American respondents expressed stronger intentions to add crypto, with 55% expecting higher allocations and 22% planning a major increase.
Age made a considerable difference. Nearly two-thirds of respondents younger than 45 expected to increase their cryptocurrency allocations, while more than 80% considered digital assets at least somewhat important for building wealth across generations.
Speaking about the findings, OKX Europe CEO Erald Ghoos said younger investors were increasingly considering crypto within their long-term financial planning.
“When investors under 45 on both sides of the Atlantic treat crypto as part of their long-term wealth, it tells you crypto is now part of how people look at their finances,” Ghoos said.
Older investors expressed greater reservations. Among American baby boomers, 65% considered cryptocurrency unimportant for generational wealth, compared with 44% of European boomers. Across the surveyed boomer group, 55% expressed that view.
European pension concerns add context to crypto survey
Separate research published by Friends of Europe in May examined retirement expectations among younger Europeans.
Its Voices for Choices study surveyed 2,000 people aged 18 to 35 across Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Poland and Spain. The research covered pension security, housing affordability, employment and access to public services.
According to the findings cited in the October 29 reporting, approximately 43% expected their future pensions to provide insufficient retirement income. The study covered a different population from OKX’s cryptocurrency investor survey, so the figures do not establish a direct relationship between pension concerns and cryptocurrency investment decisions.
Europe’s cryptocurrency market has faced separate regulatory questions. In May, crypto.news reported an OKX Europe study estimating that 60% of European crypto users continued using exchanges without Markets in Crypto-Assets authorization before the July transition deadline.
US retirement policy faces resistance over cryptocurrency investments
While American respondents in the OKX research showed interest in adding crypto to their portfolios, separate surveys found substantial reservations about using digital assets in workplace retirement plans.
An August National Institute on Retirement Security survey found that 77% of Americans considered cryptocurrency investments in retirement accounts risky, including 46% who described them as very risky.
The same research found that 53% opposed crypto in workplace retirement plans. Researchers surveyed 1,203 American adults aged 25 and older, using population weighting to measure national attitudes.
U.S. policy has moved toward permitting retirement plan managers to consider alternative assets. In May 2025, the Department of Labor rescinded its cryptocurrency guidance, removing instructions that had urged retirement fiduciaries to exercise extreme caution.
In March 2026, the department proposed new investment rules covering cryptocurrency and other alternative assets in workplace plans. The proposed framework requires fiduciaries to assess investment risks, liquidity, valuation and costs.
Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, alongside Representative Bobby Scott, subsequently urged the department to withdraw the proposal, warning that retirement savers could face exposure to volatile digital assets.
