Most respondents emphasized that merchants lack the infrastructure to support crypto payments for everyday transactions.
Bitcoin’s narrative as a unit of exchange is not growing as quickly as many proponents would like. In a recent survey conducted by the crypto mining platform GoMining, over 5,700 Bitcoin holders shared their experiences with crypto use for everyday payments.
The result showed that 55% of respondents rarely or never use crypto for daily real-world transactions. Admittedly, they claim to believe in crypto adoption and the privacy it provides. Still, they gave five reasons behind their choice.
A Drawback in Infrastructure
The foremost reason why many respondents do not use their crypto holdings to cover everyday payments is the lack of adequate infrastructure to enable them to do so.
Over 49% of respondents (2,663) stressed that most merchants do not accept crypto as a payment method. GoMining’s CEO, Mark Zalan, emphasized this point, telling CryptoPotato that “people don’t build a new habit if they have to hunt for places that accept it.”
Another 44.7% (2,400) of the survey respondents cited high fees as a barrier, while 26.8% (1,440) highlighted long transaction processing times as a challenge. Blockchain networks, such as Bitcoin, that use a proof-of-work (PoW) consensus algorithm often struggle with network speed and transaction fees. As a result, users may find themselves paying more in fees than they would with traditional payment methods.
Stablecoins: A Better Option?
Over 43% of respondents (2,330) cited price volatility as the reason they did not use crypto for daily payments. Granted, most cryptocurrencies, like BTC, are known for their nonstop volatility. As a result, many have flocked to stablecoins for payments. GoMining’s CEO recognized and emphasized this in his comment:
“The [transaction] confirmations need to be fast, and the customer needs to know what to expect from receipts or dispute handling. That’s why stablecoin settlement and card-style systems are drawing so much attention; they lower friction for merchants while keeping the flow familiar. [. . .] Rewards can help people try it at first, but they only stick if fees are low and you can actually use it everywhere.”
Finally, 36.2% (1,942) of respondents pointed to potential scams as the reason they did not embrace crypto for everyday payments.
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On the question of whether Zalan believes crypto should be used more for payments, he said that he doesn’t. Instead, he noted that trying to force that is part of the market confusion.
“Bitcoin can play a payment role, often as a settlement and reserve layer that allows faster rails above it. However, there are numerous other tokens that are better viewed as utility for networks, tools for governance, or even as risks, not as money,” he added.
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