A new survey by the Economist Impact dubbed “Digimentality 2022—Fear and favouring of digital currency” revealed that investors are becoming more open to cryptocurrencies for investment and payment purposes.
More than 3,000 consumers alongside 150 institutional investors and corporate treasury management took part in the survey. The study was conducted in January and February 2022 and commissioned by the leading cryptocurrency exchange platform, CryptoCom. The data brings comparisons from previous years including 2020 and 2021.
According to the report, individuals are now shifting their focus to digital payment methods including credit cards, payment apps, crypto assets, and central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) to purchase goods and services.
About 75% of the survey participants use digital payments instead of banknotes, coins, or credit cards. Among the respondents who use digital payments, 13% use crypto assets as their form of digital payment; 60% of respondents said they plan to buy, hold, or sell non-fungible tokens (NFTs) within the next three years.
About 18% of the respondents believe their country will go cashless in the next one year or two years, up from 17% last year and 14% in 2020.
“The results of this year’s research show considerable development in the ecosystem for digital assets and currencies globally. Both consumers and institutions are more optimistic about the move to cashless today than they were a year ago and more interested in digital assets,” Charles Ross, principal at Economist Impact and editor of the report, said.
A total of 85% of institutional investors and corporate treasury agree that there is a need for open-source digital currencies, up from 80% in the previous year, the report said.
Institutional investors and corporate treasury representing 35% agree that government regulations are one of the major factors that will hinder the wide acceptance of digital assets; 47% agreed with the notion last year.
