A study conducted by Postbank has found that a third of Germans are interested in investing in cryptocurrency.

The Postbank Digital Study was conducted between February and March 2018. 3,100 people selected to be representative of age, gender and location were asked questions regarding cryptocurrency.

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The study discovered that Germans are very interested in the independence of cryptocurrency from regulation, but women are more attracted by this particular aspect than men (60 and 51 percent respectively). The possibility of high returns is more interesting to men though (56/36 percent).

Of those that indicated an interest in cryptocurrency investment, a full third cited anonymity as a positive factor.

In the 18-34 age group, 46 percent of Germans are interested in cryptocurrency as an investment.

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Interestingly, the survey found that one in five Germans consider themselves to have a good knowledge of cryptocurrency. Amongst the youngsters, that figure is 29 percent.

“Due to the media hypes, many people overestimate their knowledge of the opportunities and risks of cryptocurrencies as an investment,” said Dr. Thomas Mangel, Chief Digital Officer of Postbank.

Postbank’s report on the survey is peppered with such cautionary remarks. “It is noteworthy that Germans are still interested in cryptocurrencies as a financial investment despite high losses and obvious risks. There is certainly a real risk that people will lose money just because they follow a hype,” warned Mangel.

Postbank is a Bonn-based retail bank which was formed in 1990 by a breakaway division of Deutsche Bundespost. By 2003 it had more customers than any other bank in the country. It was purchased by Deutsche Bank in 2010.

“Despite all the fascination, young investors should not lose sight of offers from the established banking system. Anyone who already makes an investment in securities as an investment should certainly not invest in cryptocurrencies because of the high risks involved. Because this type of investment is highly speculative,” added Mangel.

The German government seems to be accepting of cryptocurrency overall. The Federal Ministry of Finances declared in February that it won’t tax small purchases made using cryptocurrency, a decision which treats the medium as legal tender, and the government has met with advocacy group Blockchain Bundesverband for formal talks. The group announced after the February meeting that the government “welcomes the Blockchain industry.”