1 in 4 Retail Stores Will Accept Cryptocurrency Payments in 9 Countries

• About a quarter of small businesses in those countries around the world plan to offer crypto payment services.
• A Visa survey will expire that small merchants in these countries consider the need to incorporate this option to boost their growth.

About 25% of small businesses in nine countries will accept cryptocurrencies as a form of payment, the most recent survey by Visa Inc. will reveal.The same study also found that about 13% of surveyed consumers expect commercial establishments to incorporate services of payments in digital currencies.

The survey was applied to 2,250 small business owners located in the United States, Canada, Brazil, Singapore, Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates, Germany, Ireland and Russia.

The study establishes that digital money could be becoming universal as a means of payment. To complement the survey, Visa interviewed 1,000 other adults in the US and 500 adults spread across the nine countries.

“I think more people feel safer with cryptocurrencies,” said Jeni Mundy, Visa’s global director of commercial sales and acquisitions, in an interview reported by Reuters.

Although in the last two years the adoption of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies has increased around the world and digital assets have become popular with investors at all levels, they are not yet a payment instrument for goods and services.

One of the problems with its full use in retail is its high volatility. Bitcoin fell just over 5% on Monday to settle below $ 40,000. Wednesday at 14:27 UTC. had managed to recover by reaching $ 43,787.36 per unit.

According to the survey, outside of North America small businesses are willing to accept a variety of cryptocurrencies to pay for the goods and services they offer.

More than 30% of small business merchants located in Brazil, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore and Hong Kong plan to offer customers this payment option this year.

Traders recognize that the increasing use of cryptocurrencies is opening up a wide market. Despite the fact that there is no single regulatory framework in all jurisdictions where its trade and exploitation is allowed.

On the Flipside

• However, according to the Visa survey, fewer small businesses plan to offer crypto payments in 2022 in the US and Canada. In the US only 19% of surveyed merchants said they will, and in Canada just one 8%.

Why You Should Care

• 3 out of 4 companies surveyed in these countries recognized the need to incorporate payments with cryptocurrencies to expand options to customers. Merchants consider it “essential” to do so to boost their business growth.

For Mundy, the adoption of this payment option by many small businesses around the world could be seen as a natural evolution. They are even looking at what other forms of payment they can take and which ones they should consider, she added.