Back in October — in what seems a lifetime ago in the cryptocurrency world — PYMNTS and BitPay’s “Shopping With Cryptocurrency” study found that “tech-driven” consumers, representing roughly 15% of all consumers and 22% of past or present cryptocurrency holders, are the most likely to transact with it.
But now, as FTX hauls itself into bankruptcy court, other crypto exchanges shudder and bitcoin hovers at $16,000, merchants must ask an existential question: Do I accept crypto, or not?
It might make sense that as bitcoin and its brethren are volatile, consumers may hold off on using their holdings to buy goods and services. The purchasing power of those digital coins fluctuates day to day, hour to hour. It also might make sense that merchants would be worried that they might not see their money when consumers do transact (FTX’s ripple effects include concerns over governance and frozen funds).