97% of Payment Firms are Crypto-Optimistic: Ripply Survey

Ripple and the U.S. Faster Payments Council (FPC) released the ‘Blockchain and Crypto in Payments – Transforming the Way Money Moves’ report. Per the report, 97% of respondents (or FPC subscribers) believe that cryptocurrency and blockchain technology would play a pivotal role in expediting payments in the upcoming three years.

The report notes, Nearly every surveyed leader (97%) believes blockchain technology and cryptocurrency will have a significant or very significant role in enabling faster payments within the next three years.

Issued on March 2, the survey fieldwork took place in Q1 2022. Per the report, over 50% of surveyed payment executives opine that a majority of merchants would accept crypto payments in the next 1 to 3 years.

The said report throws light on the emerging trends in global crypto payment. The survey was delivered to 950 FPC subscribers (viz. analysts and CEOs hailing from 45 countries).

Over 281 respondents answered 25 questions on blockchain payment use cases and advantages in the survey. It also shed light on digital asset ownership and utility barriers. As per Ripple and FPC, optimism is thriving in the Middle East and African markets owing to strong financial access and inclusion (mobile payments and Central Bank Digital Currencies or CBDCs).

Middle East and African leaders appear particularly bullish: 27% believe that they’ll cross this threshold within the next year

While 52% of survey respondents associate crypto utility with payments, only 17% of them supported crypto-led payments during the survey, per the report.

“Regulatory clarity and limited adoption” impact cryptocurrency payments’ adoption per 90% of survey respondents.

Per the report, Nearly 90% of surveyed leaders acknowledge some “cost-improvements related to international payments” and 75% expect domestic cost benefits.

The report quotes Lou Grilli, Sr. Innovation Strategist, PSCU, Credit unions and community banks should view money movement using blockchain as an incremental evolution—not a disruption—that has the potential to lower costs and increase speed of settlement […] with the added benefit of being available 24/7/365.