Survey: Retail Sentiment Remains Strong After FTX Collapse, Even in CeFi Firms

Consumer confidence in the digital asset industry remains high despite the recent collapse of some high-profile crypto companies, a new survey shows. Comparing the findings with the previous year, the survey noted that the recent developments in the crypto markets had little to no impact on user sentiment. 

More Than 75% of Respondents ‘Confident’ in Future of Crypto

A new survey by blockchain infrastructure firm Paxos suggests that consumer confidence in the future of crypto remains strong despite the recent volatility. In fact, more than 75% of respondents said they are “very confident or somewhat confident” in the future of the industry.

Furthermore, 72% of those surveyed said they “are a little or not at all” concerned about the recent developments in the industry that led to one of the biggest crashes in history. “Notably, these results indicate no change in how respondents felt 12 months ago,” Paxos said in the report. 

The survey also revealed that 42% of respondents are interested in using crypto as a means of payment for goods or services. Another 38% expressed interest in earning crypto as a credit card or loyalty program reward while 34% of respondents were interested in using crypto to send money to friends.

Conducted in early 2023, the survey questioned 5,000 respondents that lived in the United States, were over 18 years of age, had a total household income greater than $50,000, and purchased cryptocurrency sometime within the last three years. 

Join our Telegram group and never miss a breaking digital asset story.

Crypto Users Continue to Trust Centralized Custodians

The Paxos survey further revealed that consumer trust in centralized custodians and third parties remains high. More specifically, 89% of respondents said they continue to trust banks, crypto exchanges, and mobile payment apps to store their funds. The survey said:

“In fact, despite the high-profile collapses and underlying poor risk management practices seen in several crypto companies, crypto owners still trust intermediaries to hold crypto on their behalf.”

Moreover, crypto users said they would prefer to be able to purchase digital assets from their traditional banks. 75% of those surveyed said they are “likely or very likely” to buy Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies from their primary bank if it offered this service, indicating a 12% increase over the past year. 

“Additionally, 45% of respondents reported they would be encouraged to invest more in crypto if there was more mainstream adoption by banks and other financial institutions,” the report added. As of now, PayPal and Robinhood are the two largest platforms for crypto owners in the US, each at 31% and 26%, respectively. 

The year 2022 marked one of the worst years for the crypto industry. A string of high-profile failures, including the implosion of Terra’s algorithmic stablecoin and the catastrophic collapse of FTX, once the third-largest crypto exchange in the world, led to a dire market downturn that saw around $2 trillion worth of value wiped out of the market. 

Do you think the ongoing regulatory crackdown would negatively impact crypto sentiment in the US? Let us know in the comments below.