Visa Publishes First-of-its-Kind Cryptocurrency Study

A new study conducted by Visa, Brevan Howard, and Castle Island Ventures finds that stablecoins are increasingly being used for practical purposes beyond speculative crypto trading.

The study, titled “Stablecoins: The Emerging Market Story,” marks the first global effort to track real-world usage of stablecoins, with information collected from 2,500 users in Brazil, Nigeria, Turkey, Indonesia, and India.

According to the survey, $2.6 trillion worth of stablecoin transactions have been recorded so far in 2024, with most of these attributed to real-world applications. “This is the first of its kind and I think it’s very revealing of the real-world use of stablecoins, not just for crypto speculation,” Nic Carter of Castle Island Ventures said in a statement. Carter added that the research fills a gap in understanding how stablecoins are adopted, particularly in emerging markets.

The survey, conducted by YouGov between May 29 and June 13, 2024, targeted 500 cryptocurrency users in each of five emerging markets. The findings show that stablecoins, which typically track the value of the US dollar, are increasingly seen as a “core application” in the crypto space, offering practical solutions such as currency conversion, remittances and payment for goods.

After filtering out speculative transactions such as arbitrage and intra-exchange transfers, the survey found that stablecoins will have processed around $3.7 trillion in transactions in 2023. The industry is on track to surpass that figure in 2024, with $2.6 trillion in transactions in the first half of the year alone, for a projected annual total of $5.28 trillion.

Despite the overall decline in the crypto market, stablecoin usage has continued to grow. The report shows that 57% of users have increased their stablecoin usage in the past year and 72% expect this trend to continue.

The survey also revealed regional differences in stablecoin usage. In Turkey, users used stablecoins primarily to generate returns, while in Nigeria, the primary purpose was to save money in US dollars.

*This is not investment advice.