- 82% of UK adults are actively trying to grow wealth but only 29% have invested in crypto.
- Lack of knowledge, not scepticism, is the main reason.
- 43% of adults would trust their bank most to help them invest in crypto - more than exchanges and trading platforms combined.
London, 2 June 2026 – New research from bunq, Europe's second-largest neobank, reveals a significant gender gap in UK crypto adoption as British women view the currency as difficult to access and not designed for them.
bunq’s Crypto Trust Index found that one in five women (21%) have ever invested in crypto compared to 37% of men, and nearly a quarter describe it as “masculine”. Women are almost twice as likely as men to find it inaccessible, and 35% say they would not know where to start if they wanted to learn, compared to 18% of men.
More than half of Brits believe the current economic climate makes exploring alternative investments such as crypto more important, with 70% of women and 59% of men unsure about their financial situation. Overall, 82% of UK adults are actively trying to grow their wealth, and given this appetite in investment, the report’s findings suggest the gap in engagement is being driven more by confidence and accessibility than by a lack of interest in growing wealth. Among those who have never invested in crypto, 65% say lack of knowledge and understanding is the primary reason holding them back.
The research also highlights growing demand for more trusted and accessible routes into crypto investing. Among non-investors, 37% say clear guidance would be the single most important factor in helping them take a first step. Most are turning to trusted sources, with 43% saying they would trust their bank most to help, more than crypto exchanges and trading platforms combined. A further 21% specifically say they want a regulated and familiar environment as their entry point.
Among existing investors, the findings suggest confidence does not always reflect understanding. Men are twice as likely as women to say they invest in crypto without fully understanding it. When seeking guidance, 11% of investors turn to social media and 12% to online forums, compared to just 7% who rely on their bank.
“For years, the crypto industry has been building for the insiders, but mainstream adoption is being driven by trust and simplicity, not complexity.”said Joe Wilson, Chief Evangelist at bunq “Users are open to exploring new ways to put their money to work, but they want to do it in a familiar, safe, and easy-to-use environment. At bunq, we’re building that bridge and making crypto accessible for anyone ready to take their first step.”
bunq, Europe’s second-largest neobank, has rebuilt banking from the ground up. As the world’s first GenAI-powered bank, bunq’s proprietary AI powers every part of the business, from helping users with their finances, to being baked into bunq’s own operations. By developing a product rooted in its users’ wants and needs, bunq makes life easy for location-independent people and businesses, starting from the way they manage money: how they spend, save, budget and invest.
Pioneering many things considered impossible, bunq was the first bank to get a greenfield European banking permit in over 35 years, raised the largest series A round ever secured by a European fintech (€193 million), and was the first EU neobank to achieve structural profitability. As part of its mission to build the first global neobank, bunq has also received its US broker-dealer license and applied for its US and Mexican banking license, with more global expansion to follow. Learn more: www.bunq.com