A growing number of clients now own digital assets, according to a new survey of financial advisors conducted by the Digital Assets Council of Financial Professionals (DACFP).
The latest Advisor Pulse Survey for Q4 2024 reveals that 24% of advisors report at least half of their clients have purchased alternative assets. This increase coincides with a shift in advisors’ attitudes toward digital assets. The DACFP finds that 20% of advisors now recommend cryptocurrencies to all their clients, nearly doubling from Q3 2024. Additionally, 64% advise at least 10% of their clients to consider crypto, while 35% recommend digital assets to at least half of their client base.
“These findings highlight a significant acceleration in crypto adoption among both advisors and investors,” says DACFP Founder Ric Edelman. “The steady rise in allocation recommendations signals growing confidence in digital assets as a legitimate portfolio component.”
Among advisors recommending crypto, 30% suggest a 2% allocation, while 20% advocate for a 5% allocation. The percentage of advisors recommending a 10% to 14% allocation increased by 3% in Q4, reflecting a shift toward higher exposure to digital assets.
For advisors not yet recommending crypto, many plan to do so in the near future. The survey indicates that 46% intend to introduce crypto allocations within the next year, with 33% expecting to do so within six months. Among those planning to add crypto to portfolios soon, 90% will recommend allocations between 1% and 5%.
This growing interest in alternative assets coincides with a policy shift under the Trump administration, which has leaned into cryptocurrency adoption. A separate survey by Bitwise Asset Management, a global crypto-specialist asset manager overseeing more than $12 billion in client assets, and VettaFi, an exchange-traded fund (ETF) platform, finds that 56% of advisors are more inclined to invest in crypto in 2025 due to the administration’s stance.
Despite this momentum, skepticism remains prevalent among financial professionals. A Cerulli Associates survey of 2,000 financial advisors conducted in April found that 59% do not currently use or plan to use cryptocurrencies in their client portfolios.
