While digital currencies like Bitcoin have seen an unprecedented degree of growth in both valuation and popularity over the past year, widespread misinformation and confusion are still prevalent. A new study about investors in the U.K. came to that conclusion, with the same also identifying worrying trends that could hinder growth in the future.

The study by researchers at tradersofcrypto.com surveyed “hundreds of members of the British public” to get answers to frequently-asked crypto-questions they had discovered through the U.K and USA’s Google search trends.

The answers clearly highlighted the lack of knowledge about what the crypto-industry entails. For instance, 22.4% of the respondents answered that they had no idea what cryptocurrency is, while many others had false assumptions. The same was the case for Bitcoin since only 11% of the answers correctly defined it as a cryptocurrency.

Interestingly, while awareness about Dogecoin was found to be low, it was much higher than top alts like Ethereum and Cardano. Curiously, some people perceived the two to be a drug and a kind of cheese, respectively.

Source: TradersOfCrypto

However, many respondents also considered all the currencies to be Bitcoin, “showing that people believe Bitcoin to be an almost umbrella term synonymous with cryptocurrency itself.”

Nevertheless, the lack of trust stemming from misinformation could also be noticed in the report’s other findings. For instance, 3.9% of the respondents described Bitcoin as “rubbish” while 2% claimed cryptos are “fake money.”

More importantly, an overwhelming 64.6% of the respondents didn’t believe that cryptos are a safe investment. This is a worrying trend, one that could hinder the market’s growth. Additionally, around 75% of those surveyed were also firm that the U.K would never follow El Salvador’s footsteps in making Bitcoin legal tender.

Nevertheless, a lack of trust or knowledge has hardly affected the boom in interest, not even in the UK and USA.

The same study found that across 12 months in the U.K. and U.S, there have been approximately 9,269,000 searches for “cryptocurrency.” While the most-searched phrase was “best cryptocurrency,” “what cryptocurrency to mine” and “how to buy cryptocurrency” followed closely behind.

Source: tradersofcrypto.com

Concerns about where the market is heading, industry safety, and the legality of it all also pointed to a hike in curiosity.

“This booming interest in the crypto market suggests that cryptocurrency is turning more mainstream than ever, and will become a staple of the future investment landscape.”

For the cryptocurrency industry to go truly mainstream, investor hesitation and cynicism need to be tackled through effective engagement and education.

No precedent on how to treat profits earned via crypto, says prosecutor

In a bizarre turn of events, the Swedish government is being forced to pay Bitcoin worth $1.5 million to a convicted drug dealer after the digital asset that the convict amassed illegally, skyrocketed in value during his time in prison.

The case has highlighted the need not only for prosecutors to be educated on the workings of cryptocurrencies but also to determine a protocol for treating illegal profits earned via digital assets.

The dealer was convicted by the Swedish court two years ago after he was caught selling drugs online and illegally earning 36 BTC from the sales. Prosecutor Tove Kullberg was successful in proving the crime and argued that the illegally earned Bitcoin, whose value then was estimated as 1.3 million Swedish kronor ($149,000), should be confiscated.

However, the prosecutor used the fiat value of Bitcoin while making her initial case. “It is unfortunate in many ways,” Kullberg told Swedish Radio. “It has led to consequences I was not able to foresee at the time,” she explained.  

Over the course of the last two years, the price of Bitcoin increased almost tenfold. Thus, when the Swedish Enforcement Authority decided to auction the illegally earned Bitcoin, they only had to sell 3 BTC to generate the 1.3 million Swedish kronor sanctioned by the court.

The remaining 33 BTC is now being returned to the drug dealer despite his confession that the assets were earned illegally by selling drugs online. 33 Bitcoins is worth about $1.5 million today.

The prosecutor stated that there has been no precedent in Swedish legal history on the treatment of Bitcoin profits in court.

She added that the profit from the crime should have been 36 BTC regardless of the value of the cryptocurrency at the time of argument. The unusual situation could also have been avoided if the auction was conducted immediately post-conviction.  

“I think we should probably invest in an internal education in the [prosecution] authority, as cryptocurrency will be a factor we’ll be dealing with to a much greater extent than we are today,” Kullberg said. 

“The more we increase the level of knowledge within the organization, the fewer mistakes we will make,” the prosecutor concluded. 

The government of Sweden has found itself in the unusual situation of paying out around $1.5 million worth of Bitcoin to a drug dealer, whom they convicted and then jailed. Authorities are being forced to pay the man 33 BTC, after his illegally obtained bitcoin appreciated while behind bars.

A Swedish Prosecutor’s Mistake

Two years ago, a Swedish court convicted the man for selling drugs online and illegally earning 36 BTC from those sales. However, his prosecutor at the time, Tove Kullberg, used the fiat value of the coin to make her initial case.

And as a result, the court judged that the man’s illicitly earned Bitcoin should be seized, at its then-value of 1.3 million Swedish kronor ($100,000). This mistake led to the court having to pay $1.5 million to the drug dealer upon his release.

Related Reading | Bitcoin Poised To Explode Above $50K?, Why Fundamentals Shout More Profits

In the two years following the man’s conviction and imprisonment, the price of bitcoin has skyrocketed. His crypto stash had appreciated significantly to more than $1.5 million. To satisfy the court’s original settlement of $100,000, the Swedish Enforcement Authority needed to sell off just 3 BTC. That leaves 33 BTC, worth $1.5 million, left from the criminal’s wallet that they must now return. The Swedish Government would have avoided this problem entirely if they had sold the 36 coins at the time of incarceration. Alternatively, if the prosecutor had reported the funds in crypto instead of dollars.

Tove Kullberg’s Reaction

Speaking to Swedish radio, Kullberg admitted that the way she chose to go about reporting the funds in dollars and not crypto was a mistake. She describes it as “unfortunate in many ways. It has led to consequences I was not able to foresee at the time.” She also added, “The lesson to be learned from this is to keep the value in Bitcoin, that the profit from the crime should be 36 Bitcoin, regardless of what value the Bitcoin has at the time.” She continued that the mistake came about because this was the first time this type of case had been seen in Swedish legal history.

BTC price now trending at almost $49,000 | Source: BTCUSD on TradingView.com

Kullberg also stressed the importance for the government to educate its workforce about the details of the crypto industry, and how it factors into court rulings. “The more we increase the level of knowledge within the organization, the fewer mistakes we will make.”

This case is a typical example of how cryptocurrencies continue to challenge legal authorities. Governments, all over the world, have been trying to understand the volatile and technical nature of cryptos. And find ways to integrate it into the legal systems.

Featured image from CoinGeek, Chart from TradingView.com