In the Past 17 Years since Bitcoin’s Birth
Cryptocurrencies have been seen as everything from a temporary trend to an upcoming revolution. Recent years have increasingly leaned towards the latter, largely due to stablecoins and greater institutional investment.
Increasing Merchant Adoption of Crypto Payments
A new study by PayPal and the National Cryptocurrency Association shows that approximately 39% of merchants already accept crypto payments. Roughly half of businesses with an annual revenue over $500 million fall into this category.
“Merchants are always looking for ways to enhance customer experience and drive sales, and payment methods play a significant role in that process," said Don Apgar, Director of Merchant Payments at Javelin Strategy & Research. “As consumer interest in crypto grows, so will its appeal among merchants."
Younger Customers Drive Interest
The majority of surveyed merchants reported frequent inquiries about crypto payments, especially from younger customers in the millennial and Gen Z demographics.
Besides attracting these sought-after customers, merchants highlighted transaction speed and security as key benefits of crypto payments. These payments often settle almost instantaneously on transparent blockchain networks, which can also benefit cross-border transactions, opening up new markets for businesses.
About 84% of respondents believe that crypto payments will become commonplace in the next five years.
Addressing Concerns About Volatility
A major obstacle to wider adoption has been the volatility of digital assets. However, advancements by major payment processors have relieved merchants of this responsibility.
For example, Visa launched a stablecoin acceptance platform allowing merchants to accept cross-border stablecoin payments without handling tokens directly. Similarly, PayPal introduced a crypto platform that handles transactions in over 100 cryptocurrencies from leading wallets like Coinbase Wallet, MetaMask, and Kraken.
With growing consumer demand and better merchant enablement, the widespread use of digital asset payments at retail seems imminent.
