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The survey, which progressive 8,205 companies crossed the European Union, recovered that lone 0.2% accepted cryptocurrencies for online payments. Acceptance of integer assets roseate to 1% astatine carnal points of sale. 92% of companies with carnal points of merchantability judge cash, making it the astir wide accepted outgo method successful Europe.
Published: Aug 16, 2026, 5:30 AM
Key Takeaways
- An ECB survey recovered crypto acceptance astatine European businesses is nether 1%, portion currency dominates astatine 92%.
- Low crypto adoption means EU businesses miss retired connected reduced transaction fees and less middlemen.
- Despite MiCA regulations offering clarity, EU outgo firms are dilatory to physique crypto solutions.
ECB Use of Cash Survey Reveals Low Cryptocurrency Adoption
The latest survey of the European Central Bank (ECB) connected the usage of currency by companies successful the euro country has offered an penetration into the debased level of crypto adoption successful the region.
The survey, which included 8,205 companies successful each Euro country countries, seeks to find the lasting of currency among different much modern outgo options. The results bespeak that carnal wealth is the astir wide adopted outgo enactment crossed Europe, with currency being accepted astatine 92% of the companies selling goods and services astatine carnal locations.
Cash surpassed adjacent cards, which ranked 2nd with 88% acceptance, portion mobile payments roseate from 36% successful 2024 to 68% successful 2026.
The emergence of integer payments and their promotion successful acquisition automation systems specified arsenic self-checkout terminals were identified arsenic issues that mightiness trim the easiness of paying with cash.
“To guarantee wide currency acceptance, it is important to guarantee that the expanding automation of payments does not inadvertently hinder oregon undermine currency arsenic a viable outgo option,” the slope stressed.
Digital currencies look arsenic a rounding mistake successful the survey, arsenic the slope revealed that lone 0.2% of the businesses surveyed accepted crypto oregon stablecoins arsenic outgo methods for online purchases. This fig rises to 1% among companies utilizing a carnal constituent of sale, inactive well beneath the adoption of these successful emerging markets.
This shows that adjacent arsenic a bulk of fiscal institutions admit determination is simply a concern lawsuit for integer assets, cutting middlemen and reducing transaction fees, they person been dilatory to instrumentality integer plus systems to leverage their advantages
European outgo processors person consequently failed to capitalize on the regulatory momentum aft the afloat implementation of the Markets successful Crypto Assets (MiCA) framework.
Mark Aruliah, Elliptic’s Head of EMEA Policy & Regulatory Affairs, stressed that with MiCA successful place, outgo processors “can confidently make compliant crypto outgo solutions tailored to the European market,” even facing limitations that volition beryllium addressed successful the future.
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