Payments solution firm Paysafe has revealed that a staggering 80% of owners of its crypto wallet prefer to make transactions via cryptocurrencies.
The lack of crypto payment options at the point of sale is a glaring need according to Paysafe’s research. HMRC claims that five million people from the UK currently own some form of cryptocurrency, and a further 34 million US nationals own crypto too.
Paysafe suggests that retailers may be missing out if they do not have crypto payment accepting options at their checkouts due to the overwhelming support for these options.
The report by the payment firm indicates that a growth in crypto checkouts could “potentially release as much as millions of untapped revenue for retailers in an increasingly challenging economic environment”.
Of the 3,000 crypto users surveyed, 91% believe online payments via crypto will be as common as paying by card or contactless, and 59% believe this could be a formality in the next five years.
“Crypto asset holders are convinced that crypto is the future of payments and understand that it is here for the long-term,” said Elbruz Yilmaz, SVP of Crypto at Paysafe.
“With this positive outlook for the growing popularity of crypto payments in spite of the current market volatility, retailers that are innovative and forward thinking enough to be among the first to accept crypto could gain competitive advantage, increased brand awareness and market share.”
Further findings reveal 88% of people surveyed believe crypto payments will be as common as store payments, with 47% hopeful this will transpire in the next five years.
Despite the current economic downturn affecting most major countries and the crypto market enduring a ‘crypto winter’, adoption of cryptocurrencies in the UK has accelerated over the past several years.
With high-profile figures such as ex-Chancellor Rishi Sunak envisioning Britain to become a ‘global hub for cryptocurrency’, as well as the initial draft of a potential crypto bill being proposed inside Parliament last July, regulated cryptocurrency trading could become a reality in the near future.
This would in turn, foster an adoption for crypto payments and for more crypto payment methods at the point of sale. Paysafe is already finding crypto users who want to spend their crypto on ‘big ticket items’ such as cars, property, and personal bucket list purchases.
Yilmaz added: “Being one of the first retailers or brands to do this has clear advantages, but it’s critical it is done right. As a globally-recognised market leader with over twenty years of experience in payments, deep crypto expertise, and the ability to scale at speed, Paysafe is uniquely positioned to enable seamless and compliant digital asset transactions for both businesses and consumers.”
