A third of Australian’s believe cryptocurrency is the money of the future and 40 per cent willing to invest in the digital currency this year, according to a new survey by Savvy.

The survey found 71 per cent of Australians either understand or are interested in learning more about the new trend, with 17 per cent of respondents already owning some cryptocurrency – 15.2 per cent invested up to $5,000, 2.5 per cent invested $5,000 – $10,000, while 1 per cent invested $10,000 – $20,000.

More men than women claimed exceptional or average understanding of cryptocurrencies, with Bitcoin (44 per cent), Ethereum (21 per cent) and entrepreneur Elon Musk’s favourite, DogeCoin (18 per cent) the most popular options.

Respondents were split on whether the crypto “bubble” would burst by 2022, with 79.8 per cent of all respondents calling for cryptocurrencies to be more heavily regulated.

Savvy managing director Bill Tsouvalas said the public profile of ‘bitcoin millionaires’ and other successful crypto investors made the currency seem promising.

“There is a high proportion [of Australians] invested in crypto long-term as well as to diversify their investment portfolio,” he said.

“Getting in on cryptocurrency is becoming less of a novelty and more of a sound investment strategy.”

“It’s time for the wider finance sector to embrace it rather than treat it as a fad, or they’ll be left behind.”

What is Bitcoin?: Cryptocurrency explained

Bitcoin is one of many so-called cryptocurrencies, which allow people to bypass banks and traditional payment methods.

Not issued or controlled by a single company or person, the Bitcoin is a shared ledger of transactions run by a decentralized network of computers around the world.

Each transaction made with Bitcoins is transferred to a decentralised network and ‘mined’ into the Blockchain, with ‘digital keys’ needed to unlock and spend funds.

Everybody involved in acquiring or disposing of cryptocurrency needs to keep records in relation to their cryptocurrency transactions by law in Australia.

Find out more about the tax treatment of cryptocurrency in Australia on the ATO’s website.