Almost four in ten US merchants now accept cryptocurrency at checkout, as customers have shown increasing interest in crypto for payments, according to a recent PayPal survey.
Nearly nine in ten US merchants stated that they’ve received customer inquiries about crypto payments, PayPal reported on Tuesday, citing data from a National Cryptocurrency Association survey.
The survey was conducted in October, with 619 payment-strategy decision-makers from across several industries participating.
“What we’re seeing both in this data and in conversations with our customers is that crypto payments are moving beyond experimentation and into everyday commerce,” PayPal vice president and GM May Zabaneh said:
“Adoption is being driven by customer demand for faster, more flexible ways to pay — and once businesses start accepting crypto, they see real value.“
The survey also found 84% of merchants think crypto payments will become mainstream in the next five years.
Crypto proponents say digital assets could play a growing role in everyday payments, particularly where faster settlement or lower cross-border costs are valued, though adoption remains uneven and infrastructure complexity is still a barrier for many merchants.
PayPal launched a crypto checkout tool in July that allows US merchants to receive payments with more than 100 cryptocurrencies.
According to the survey, adoption is strongest among large enterprises, while 32% of midsized businesses and 34% of small companies are accepting crypto.
Some larger US companies that accept crypto include Starbucks, Walmart and Home Depot.
Among merchants that already accept crypto, these payments represent 26% of total sales, showing that customers are able and willing to pay with crypto when the option is available.
Young shoppers are pushing crypto adoption
Millennials and Gen Z have so far proven to be the most crypto-savvy shoppers, while the hospitality and travel, digital goods and gaming industries lead overall adoption.
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However, PayPal said that crypto payment infrastructure needs to be simplified to reach the next level of adoption, noting that 90% of merchants said they would try accepting crypto if it were as simple as credit card payments.
“What this data makes clear is that interest in crypto isn’t the problem; understanding is,” said Stu Alderoty, National Cryptocurrency Association president and Ripple chief legal officer.
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