Key Takeaways
- A Visa study found 46% of APAC consumers plan to use stablecoins within 5 years, driving everyday use cases.
- Just 6% of users understand stablecoins, as rampant misconceptions and fraud fears stall broader adoption.
- Visa aims to bridge this gap by integrating stablecoin tech into its trusted, regulated payment experiences.
Visa Survey Finds Rising Interest in Stablecoins in APAC
Visa, the credit giant, has found a rising interest in stablecoins in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region, with customers being open to adopting these solutions for key use cases.
The Visa Consumer 360 study, which surveyed over 14,000 consumers between 18 and 65 years old in 14 key APAC markets, including China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, India, and Australia, among others, found that 46% of the consumers were likely to use stablecoins within the next five years, even though only 16% have used them in the last year.
Interestingly, the most common use cases include online purchases, travel spending, and overseas shopping, as Visa highlighted that this stance moves them away from traditional investment or crypto trading applications.
In this sense, 49% of consumers aware of stablecoins believe stablecoins could be commonly used for cross-border payments in the next five years.
Nischint Sanghavi, Head of Digital Currencies, Asia Pacific at Visa, highlighted an ongoing shift in how consumers perceive stablecoins across APAC.
“Consumers are beginning to see how stablecoins could support the ways they already spend and move money, particularly through online purchases, travel, and cross-border transfers. The opportunity now is to turn that interest into trusted and familiar payment experiences that work at scale,” he assessed.
Nonetheless, Visa’s survey revealed widespread misconceptions about stablecoins’ true nature, with only 6% of consumers understanding the inner workings of these digital assets. Furthermore, 41% believe that stablecoins increase in value.
Fear of scams (38%) and a lack of understanding (36%) are holding back adoption among consumers who are aware of stablecoins but have not used them yet, with central bank-linked entities and regulated financial institutions ranking as the most trusted providers of stablecoin services.
This is where Visa can insert itself, providing a regulated venue for stablecoin settlements. “Consumers want stablecoins to feel like a natural part of the payments they already trust, not a separate system. Our role is to connect emerging stablecoin technology with the secure, familiar payment experiences consumers rely on every day,” Nischint concluded.
Visa has been adding stablecoins to its settlement processes, with numbers recently surpassing a $20 billion annualized run rate, growing over 15x year over year.
