What Ethereum’s Buterin Thinks About ‘Undervalued’ Crypto Payments
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin recently tweeted that cryptocurrency payments are superior due to censorship resistance and convenience. This change has given a significant boost to international businesses, charities and payments in countries, he added.
People continue to underestimate how often cryptocurrency payments are superior, not even because of censorship resistance, but simply because they are so much more convenient.
Big boost to international business and charity, and sometimes even payments within countries.
— vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) 24 August 2022
Increasing crypto adoption
A January 2022 report by Crypto.com revealed a picture of the financial world, one where cryptocurrencies are increasingly being adopted. In 2021 alone, the global crypto population increased by 178%, rising from 106 million in January to 295 million in December.
As we can see, the monthly growth of crypto users closely matches Bitcoin’s price.
The crypto adoption rate was high back in July-August 2021, but it dropped significantly in September with restrictions in many countries such as China.
We can also see that Bitcoin and Ethereum are still the most popular cryptocurrencies among users, with the former’s share of almost 60%.
BrandEssence Market Research published a study in June 2022, forecasting that the global crypto payment gateway market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 22.8% between 2022 and 2028.
While North America is expected to hold the largest share in the global crypto payment gateway market, Asia Pacific is expected to witness the fastest growth in the market.
“Increasing adoption of cryptocurrencies in general is one of the key factors driving the growth of the global crypto payment gateway market… But lack of awareness (emphasis mine) in developing and underdeveloped economies may inhibit market growth. Despite that, increasing progress in this field could create more opportunities for further growth of the market.”
Seychelles-based cryptocurrency exchange Huobi published its Crypto Perception Report 2022 in January. According to this study, only 28% of respondents said they own cryptocurrency. 47% of respondents said they don’t own crypto and don’t plan to, and 25% claimed that while they don’t currently own crypto, they plan to in the future.
Over 40% of respondents stated that they have no knowledge or little knowledge about cryptocurrencies, while 28% revealed that they are only somewhat knowledgeable.
Most people are aware of popular cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Dogecoin, Ethereum and Shiba Inu, but their knowledge of Tether, Solana or Cardano is still low. Over 50% of respondents say they are not knowledgeable enough to invest in cryptocurrencies.
Payment solutions that integrate with cryptocurrencies
Last year, Visa Inc. announced the use of the cryptocurrency USD Coin to settle transactions on the payment network in partnership with crypto.com. Mastercard also offers a variety of cryptocurrency solutions, including the crypto card program to enable crypto usage for everyday transactions.
Many crypto debit cards like Wirex not only facilitate crypto payments at POS points, but even reward users with crypto money.
A June 2022 report published by research firm Pymnts found that 85% of businesses with over $1 billion in annual online sales accept some form of crypto-enabled payment method, such as PayPal, for purchases. 77% of merchants who accept cryptocurrencies cite lower processing fees for their appeal.
As we can observe, the use of cryptocurrencies by merchants is increasing at a rapid rate, and as consumers become more crypto-aware and motivated to use them, their use will increase.
