A new report by Mintel reveals that Americans have much more positive attitudes towards cryptocurrency than UK consumers. Meanwhile, Brits are far more cautious about their investments due to the recent cost of living crisis.

Expert analysts at Mintel.com have released a new report on crypto adoption and consumer attitudes towards cryptocurrencies in the US compared to the UK.

The study revealed a few crucial insights. It clearly showed that Americans are currently much more open to the potential of crypto than Brits. Around a third of US consumers are interested in cryptocurrency use for daily purchases. Moreover, the interest in crypto is growing in the US. Namely, about 4 in 10 Americans surveyed said they were more interested in cryptocurrency than a year ago.

On the contrary, 4 in 5 Brits stated they would only trust a financial product from a regulated financial provider. As the country is only drafting crypto regulation proposals, digital asset providers do not fall under the ‘regulated’ category.

The scepticism of Brits towards crypto is overwhelming. Almost half of UK respondents do not think cryptocurrencies will become a common payment method. In addition, two-thirds of Brits surveyed lack awareness of how crypto trading works which prevents them from embracing digital assets.

Finally, a solid reason for not using crypto in the UK is the recent cost of living crisis. Rising costs made?British customers of financial services more wary of where they put their money. They tend to make investments cautiously and avoid untested industry challengers.

“Though the landscape of fintech at present is brimming with exciting and innovative new payment and banking options, the general public is reluctant and wary to engage with them. This is in part owing to the cost of living crisis, but the wariness extends beyond temporary economic circumstances. For this reason, it seems doubtful that cryptocurrency will take off in the UK in the big way that was once anticipated.”

Adrian Reynolds, Principal Analyst, Financial Services at Mintel

Besides cryptocurrency attitudes, the research explores the changing landscape of electronic payments. It concluded that UK citizens remain conservative in this financial aspect as well. The more traditional payment options like credit cards, debit cards, and cash still remain the most popular payment alternatives, with 30-50% of people in the UK using these payment methods weekly.

Alternative payment methods e.g. mobile wallets like ApplePay, online wallets like PayPal, and Buy Now Pay Later options like Klarna currently display relatively low weekly usage rates.