Virtual Assets Report

FINDINGS AND OBSERVATIONS 11 10 As presented in Figure 3, the results suggest that despite a fairly high awareness of virtual assets among the Hong Kong population, their understanding of it is somewhat low. In both phases, close to 70% of the respondents admitted that they understood virtual assets either not very well or not at all. Less than 3% of the respondents in either phase considered themselves to fully understand virtual assets. We found that online resources such as websites, blogs, podcasts and videos were the top source from which the sampled population obtained information about virtual assets, followed by social media and traditional media such as newspapers, magazines and television. Educational resources from financial institutions and friends and family were also commonly cited sources of information (see Figure 4). As most online platforms lack formal fact-checking procedures to ensure accuracy, individuals who rely on information from these sources to make investment decisions must be careful. This concern is especially salient for virtual assets, as they represent a new asset class that most investors are not familiar with. Figure 3. Respondents' Understanding of Virtual Assets Figure 4. Sources of Information about Virtual Assets 50% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% Friends and/or family Phase 1 Phase 2 Social media Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 1 Phase 2 Traditional media (e.g., newspapers, magazines, television) Phase 1 Phase 2 Other online resources (e.g., websites, blogs, podcasts, videos) Educational resources from financial institutions (e.g., articles, seminars, emails) Phase 1 Phase 2 Financial advisors Phase 1 Phase 2 Other Phase 1 Phase 2 Good understanding Fully understand To some extent Not very well Not at all 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 0% Most Important 2nd Most Important 3rd Most Important Phase 1 Phase 2