Cryptocurrency is more popular than ever. Not a day goes by, it seems, without some corner of the “Web3” ecosystem launching a new altcoin, airdrop, or white paper. Yet this increase in popularity is directly correlated to a decrease in stability, as reported by CoinDesk. We took note of this particular trend when we decided to compare two tasks we ran for our Contributors in recent months.
In September of 2021, Premise conducted a survey of nearly 3,000 Contributors to gather their thoughts on cryptocurrency. One of the focuses of the survey was how they felt about it as a payment method when using our mobile app to complete tasks.
After this survey was completed, we thought it’d be interesting to run the same task surrounding crypto perception and usage on a weekly basis through January 2022, concluding with the week leading up to January 28th. We found that in the 3 months since our survey, while many statistics had remained stagnant, a substantially less amount of Contributors were receiving payment in Bitcoin.
There is a multitude of factors that could have contributed to this dip, including the obvious lows the crypto market is experiencing at the moment. Bitcoin and Ethereum both went down to almost three-week lows this past month. However, in recent months, crypto has continued to grow in popularity and more people are gaining exposure to blockchain technology. As the New York Times reports in their article, stars like Matt Damon and Larry David are starring in commercials. Two NBA arenas have taken on the name of crypto companies.
Crypto is everywhere and almost inescapable. So it’s only natural that people are looking to learn more about this relatively new currency and method of exchange. And by doing some digging into blockchain technology in the months since the September survey, it seems Contributor sentiment has changed a bit on why they choose not to cash out in Bitcoin.
In September, the leading factor that would influence Bitcoin detractors to give it a try was speed and accessibility. If the process of receiving payment was faster and more efficient through Bitcoin, the majority of Contributors said they’d be likely to give it a try.
But in the weeks that passed between September and January, a shift in sentiment seems to have occurred. In the last week of January, the greatest influence for cashing out in Bitcoin had pivoted from a matter of convenience to a matter of stability.
This shift could suggest an increased understanding of the crypto market among Contributors – both the pros and the cons – since it’s become highly popularized. Those that have had little understanding of how cryptocurrencies work until now have reached a point where they’re ready to be open-minded about the possibilities cryptocurrencies offer. However, in doing so, it’s likely they also learn why crypto detractors have great skepticism about the future of Bitcoin and the negative impact decentralized finance could have on the economy (i.e. inflation of the U.S. dollar).
A fifth of respondents in the September survey saying they were exposed to crypto through our app for the first time shows there are still many who have little to no familiarity with how crypto works. Almost the same amount of people are finding out through word of mouth from friends and family. It appears the ways in which people are educating themselves on the subject are not purely limited to online sources.
In our subsequent recurring survey, the results were all over the place in terms of consistency (a greater percentage of respondents said they were uneducated about crypto, yet more seemed to be learning from the internet, friends, family, and other sources). A strange deviation like this further demonstrates the unpredictable and still somewhat ‘new and mysterious’ nature of the current crypto market.
Though it’s been around for years now, cryptocurrency is still very much a novel concept for many people. It’s fascinating to look at the fluctuations that crypto has experienced over the years and look at the economic and social factors surrounding each spike or dip to try to decipher what caused it, like when it gets a lot of press.
Contributors are still playing it close to the chest, however, as we wait to see the future that awaits BTC and other coins over the coming years. The more trust coins build with potential buyers, and the more people are able to learn about how blockchain technology works, the more we should see people start to have more faith. Until then, however, many are looking to play it safe as we navigate these waters, including our Contributors.