Research by The Economist Intelligence Unit shows growing acceptance of digital currencies among both consumers and institutions.
New data collected by The Economist Intelligence Unit for a survey commissioned by Crypto.com indicate that acceptance of digital currencies has increased over the past year. The full report details changing attitudes toward digital money across a broad sample of countries, ages, and backgrounds.
More than 3,000 consumers were interviewed between February and March 2021 for the Digimentality 2021 study. Compared with the previous year, respondents now express higher expectations that their countries will move toward cashless societies. The study highlights evolving consumer behavior and the factors shaping the pace of adoption.
Respondents identified deeply ingrained cash habits as the biggest barrier to a cashless transition, followed by a lack of understanding of the underlying technology. These cultural and educational hurdles remain significant even as payment habits shift.
The pandemic has accelerated that shift: many people adopted cashless payments to reduce the spread of the coronavirus. Indeed, 46% of respondents said the pandemic made digital currencies more compelling.
When asked about types of digital currency, 40% of consumers agreed that Covid-19 increased the case for central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). A slightly larger share, 46%, said the same about open-source digital currencies such as bitcoin.
Notably, respondents from emerging markets show stronger expectations for a move from cash to digital payments than those from developed economies. This suggests the pace of adoption may differ significantly across regions.
The report also surveyed 200 institutional investors and corporate treasury managers. Among these professionals, 61% believe open-source digital currencies have payment utility. Institutional and corporate respondents are generally more confident than consumers that their countries will become largely cashless: three quarters of institutional respondents expect a cashless future for their nations.
Furthermore, 78% of institutional and corporate participants agree that issuing CBDCs is necessary to build a functioning market for new financial instruments. A majority also expects CBDC development to increase demand for other non-governmental digital currencies.
Institutional attitudes toward cryptocurrencies as a store of value appear to be shifting as well. Eighty percent of institutional respondents agree that open-source digital currencies can serve as diversification assets within an investment portfolio or corporate treasury. This reflects growing recognition of crypto assets as part of asset allocation strategies.
Beyond CBDC issuance, many survey participants said a reliable institutional trading platform for digital currencies would be a trigger for increased portfolio and treasury activity in cryptocurrencies—an opinion particularly prevalent among respondents in the United States.
Overall, the survey highlights a clear trend: both consumers and institutions are moving toward greater acceptance and adoption of digital currencies. While challenges remain—especially entrenched cash habits and knowledge gaps—the momentum toward digital payment systems and broader use of crypto assets appears to be strengthening.