My grandparents never owned crypto. But they've always known their money.

When I was younger and needed money for school supplies, snacks, or a rickshaw ride, he'd pull out a note as if it had been waiting there just for me.

My grandfather prefers cash. Not in a wallet, neatly zipped up or tucked away, but haphazardly folded into his shirt pocket. Or slipped behind pages of an old diary. Or perhaps wedged between faded receipts in a drawer by the TV. Never a lot. Just enough so that someone, somewhere down the line, might feel like they thought ahead.

When I was younger and needed money for school supplies, snacks, or a rickshaw ride, he’d pull out a note as if it had been waiting there just for me. He isn’t flashy, but he never withholds. He gives with the confidence of someone who’s always kept enough. Generous in a way only the truly clever with money know how to be.

My grandmother’s world runs on order. Everything has its place, including her money. She keeps multiple purses, each with its own… ecosystem of cash – One for daily use, one “just in case,” and a few reserved for emergencies. Although what qualifies as an emergency is a mystery to the rest of us. It doesn’t matter. She knows.

Her cash is never crumpled like my grandfather’s. She flattens each note, smoothing the corners on her knee with the same care people probably give to love letters. She owns a credit card now… reluctantly. Only for hospital visits, she says, tapping it like it’s a visa to a foreign place she doesn’t plan to stay long in. She may feel weary, but she’s certainly found her footing with it.

My other grandmother is sharper than most people I know. The kind of woman you don’t challenge on numbers – unless you’re ready to lose. She tracks every rupee. Not obsessively, just with precision. She built a portfolio before most women her age knew what one was. Asks the right questions. Signs papers others said she couldn’t. At a time when women didn’t handle money, she made sure no one else would control hers. If she’d been born in a different time, she wouldn’t just have worked at a bank. She’d have run it. Owned it.

What unites all three of them is this – They’re not afraid of money. They’ve earned it, saved it, stretched it. Handled recessions, family emergencies, rising prices. Built safety nets and made it work – Quietly, with dignity.

Over time, they adapted to banks. Cards. When the pandemic hit, they paid online – Tapping, typing, hesitating, trying again. Asking questions. Writing things down. Getting it done.

It was during that time that I realised… they’re not resistant to change. They’re just rarely invited into it.

These are my grandparents, and I don’t want the future to leave them behind.

When I told them I write about crypto, they blinked.

“So… my money lives in the air now?”

“And what if the internet goes off?”

“Is there a switch to this thing?”

“Is this … real?”

They laugh. Not out of dismissal, but nervousness. Because no one ever explained it in a way that made sense to them.

They don’t talk about capital flows or on-chain data. But they understand value. Liquidity. Timing. Discipline. Risk. They’ve lived it, in the most human way possible.

The world is changing. They see that. They’re not fighting it. They’re just waiting for someone to open the door. It’s not that they can’t or don’t want to learn.

It’s that no one ever made it feel like it was meant for them.

So, who’s got a seat at the crypto table?

The average crypto holder is easy to spot – Not by face, but by data. A recent report by CryptoQuant revealed that 61% of investors are between the ages of 25 and 44. In fact, over a third fall into the 25-34 age bracket. Most are men. Most have degrees.

Source: Cryptoquant

Almost half of them hold a Bachelor’s. Another 28% have gone further. In short – Crypto is young, male, educated, and digitally fluent.

Not a flaw. Just a fact.

However, it also means this financial frontier is being shaped by a very specific kind of user. Everyone else? Still catching up. Or worse – Left behind. And often, the ones furthest from this future aren’t those without money or interest. They’re just older.

In a system built on interfaces and immediacy, age can feel like the most invisible barrier of all.

And yes, older adults should be cautious with high-risk assets. But caution isn’t the same as exclusion