Ipsos survey: 22% of Americans have held cryptocurrency, with an annual usage rate remaining steady at 13%

According to a report by Decrypt, a national survey commissioned by the cryptocurrency policy advocacy organization DeFi Education Fund and conducted by Ipsos shows that 22% of American adults have held or used cryptocurrency, up from 18% in 2025, but the usage rate over the past 12 months remains flat at 13%. The survey, conducted from September 8 to 16, interviewed 1,545 adults, with a margin of error of ±2.8 percentage points. The growth almost entirely comes from users who have dropped out: among those who have not used cryptocurrency in the past year, the proportion who had held or used it rose from 5% to 11%; the willingness to purchase in the future also remains flat, with 17% indicating they might hold or use it in the future, compared to 16% last year.

In terms of user demographics, the usage rate for men in the past year was 18%, while for women it was 8%, with the former being more than double the latter. Adults under 60 showed a significantly higher usage rate than older individuals. The primary reason for trying cryptocurrency is curiosity (34%), followed by long-term investment (25%). Respondents expressed significant unease about the traditional financial system: only 19% believe it is safe, and 63% think it needs to be upgraded to address cybercrime and AI threats; 60% are concerned about data breaches at large financial institutions, and 54% doubt their ability to withstand AI-driven threats, while 74% indicate that financial privacy is important.

This skepticism has not translated into trust in cryptocurrency. Only 4% have high trust in cryptocurrency exchanges, and 5% have high trust in decentralized platforms, while large national banks and credit unions have trust levels of 42% and 48%, respectively. The knowledge gap is also significant: only 2% of Americans are very familiar with DeFi, 6% can identify all four characteristics of cryptocurrency listed in the survey, and 35% are completely uncertain about how to describe cryptocurrency. However, 40% indicate that if DeFi were available, there is at least some possibility they would try it, with over 80% stating they would use it to save money, earn interest, or send money to friends and family; the desire to understand stablecoins and DeFi decreased from 11% to 7% and 8%, respectively.