Fed survey shows 10% of U.S. adults used crypto in 2025, below the 2021 peak of 12%. Investment dominates; payments remain niche. Institutional allocations accelerate.
The Federal Reserve’s latest Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking shows 10% of U.S. adults used or invested in cryptocurrency in 2025. That figure is up from the troughs of 2023 and 2024. It remains below the 12% peak recorded during the 2021 crypto rally. The data cuts against the narrative that retail adoption has fully recovered, even as institutional commitment accelerates.
The Fed survey, which measures economic well-being across roughly 11,000 households, recorded a gradual uptick in crypto interaction over the past two years. The 10% reading for 2025 compares with higher single-digit figures in the prior two surveys. The gap to the 12% high from 2021 suggests that the retail surge of that cycle has not been replicated, despite a significant price recovery in Bitcoin ($BTC) and other major tokens.
The Fed’s fieldwork was conducted throughout 2025, capturing the period after the launch of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded products in early 2024 and after the SEC approved tokenized stock frameworks. The survey thus reflects a market environment where regulated access improved. Total user growth did not reach the mania-driven levels of three years earlier.
| Metric | 2025 (%) | 2021 Peak (%) |
|---|---|---|
| All adults using or investing in crypto | 10 | 12 |
| Used crypto for investment | 9 | not separately reported |
| Used crypto for payments | 2 | not separately reported |
| Used crypto to send money to family or friends | 1 | not separately reported |
The data makes clear that crypto’s utility remains concentrated in the investment bucket. Only one in five crypto users touched the asset for transactions.
Among those who interacted with crypto, 9% of adults did so as an investment. The Fed survey found that 2% used it for payments and 1% for remittances. These breakdowns show that the dominant use case continues to be speculative or long-term allocation, not a substitute for fiat payment rails.
The report reveals a structural difference for unbanked Americans. 6% of unbanked adults used crypto for transactions in 2025, versus 2% of banked adults. The Fed estimated that roughly 6% of U.S. adults remained unbanked during the year. This suggests crypto functions as a payment alternative in the absence of traditional banking. The absolute numbers are still small.
Block (SQ) has enabled Bitcoin and stablecoin payments for more than 800,000 U.S. merchants. Lightspark, the Bitcoin Lightning Network startup from former PayPal President David Marcus, continues to expand payment infrastructure. Despite these efforts, broad-based transaction adoption has not materialized. Among those who did use crypto for payments, more than one-quarter said the business receiving the payment preferred digital assets. The Fed survey listed faster transfers, lower costs, and privacy as the top reasons. Fewer than 10% of payment users cited distrust of banks as a motivator.
Separate polling by POLITICO and Public First indicates that crypto policy has not become a wedge issue for most voters. Only 4% of Americans said a candidate’s stance on cryptocurrency would affect their vote in an upcoming election. Even among respondents who had previously bought or sold crypto, just 7% said policy stances would sway their choice.
Support for government action to legitimize crypto as a mainstream financial asset stood at 27%, with 31% opposed and 42% neutral or unsure. Traditional banks hold a commanding trust advantage: 47% of respondents said they would trust a bank over a crypto platform, compared with 9% who preferred crypto platforms. The majority remained uncommitted or expressed no opinion.
While retail adoption crawls higher, institutional appetite is accelerating. A March survey by Coinbase (COIN) and EY-Parthenon of 351 institutional investors globally found:
The survey highlights a divergence: institutions are deploying capital through registered vehicles, while individual adoption has not kept pace. This raises the question of whether retail interest will eventually follow the institutional lead or remain suppressed by trust and usability barriers.
The Federal Reserve under outgoing Chair Jerome Powell has taken a cautious stance on digital assets. Attention now turns to Kevin Warsh, who is set to replace Powell pending Senate approval. Warsh, a former Fed governor from 2006 to 2011, has publicly compared Bitcoin to gold for younger investors and argued the asset could help impose market discipline. His arrival could signal a shift in tone at the central bank, though concrete policy changes remain uncertain.
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Exposure:
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What Would Reduce the Risk:
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The adoption landscape is split. Institutions are allocating through regulated products. Retail is present at levels below the 2021 boom. Payments remain a side story. The next catalyst is not a price move. It is a policy signal that could shift the 4% of voters and the 27% of supporters into a more active role.
Prepared with AlphaScala research tooling and grounded in primary market data: live prices, fundamentals, SEC filings, hedge-fund holdings, and insider activity. Each story is checked against AlphaScala publishing rules before release. Educational coverage, not personalized advice.