Retail traders bought large amounts of BTC through PayPal and Square.

According to research by strategists at top US investment bank, JPMorgan Chase, retail traders are rushing to buy Bitcoin from mainstream fintech firms.

JPMorgan data shows that retail investors bought over 187,000 Bitcoins this quarter using PayPal and Square.

Retail investors are even outperforming institutions in Bitcoin buying, with JPMorgan analysts estimating institutions bought 173,000 BTC over the same period.

JP Morgan has analyzed capital flows from retail platforms and institutional media such as the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, as well as announcements from major funds of BTC purchases to inform its findings.

Senior market analyst at Oanda Corp, Ed Moya, says retail is driven by social media, the current NFT craze and stimulus spending. He told Bloomberg:

“Now, with the meme stock craze driven by Reddit and novelties like record-setting digital artwork, retail traders – are in control.”

He added that while “meme-stock” trading burned many retail traders, Bitcoin remained strong and was a lucrative piece of cake during the pandemic.

Mr. Brian Vendig, chairman of MJP Wealth Advisors, said that retail demand has been driven by FOMO sentiment following the recent wave of institutional investors targeting Bitcoin.

Data from crypto market aggregator, Glassnode, seems to confirm that retail investors have arrived very well and indeed. On March 15, Glassnode recorded a spike in net growth by 2021.

“This is a strong sign that new retail investors have entered this market.”