Cryptocurrencies have come a long way since their relatively obscure nature in 2017. The 2018 crash now seems like a blip in the overall market cap of the cryptocurrency markets. We can clearly see how adoption has happened over the last three years, with a continual uptrend occurring, reaching a market cap of over $2 trillion in late 2021. However, mass adoption is still a highly debated topic in the crypto community. Crypto still has several major barriers to overcome before we realize full mainstream adoption, such as easier entry barriers for regular users, greater real-world utility and an overall greater understanding of self-custodial assets. Let’s shed light on crypto adoption concept and learn what if crypto is fully adopted.
What is Crypto Adoption?
Crypto adoption is the market capitalization of the entire crypto market or the number of active wallets participating on blockchains. However, there are several different measures to describe what crypto mass adoption is. For example, we can say it is the percentage of governments adopting crypto or looking at individual superpowers regulation and adoption of crypto, such as the United States and Great Britain.
Using adoption curves can be a viable method for measuring crypto adoption. Let’s take a look at what an adoption curve is, and the crypto adoption curve for 2021.
Crypto Adoption Curve: what is it?
Illustrated below is the product adoption curve, demonstrating the five different groups of people desiring to test or try a new product. For cryptocurrency, this is no different, having its own crypto adoption curve.
The curve clearly demonstrates the five stages and most importantly, the chasm that the adoption has to cross in order to fully reach the mainstream market. Many in the crypto community already believe crypto has passed the chasm, penetrating the pragmatists market, where 34% of all adoption will come from.
The reasons include the better utility of projects, real innovating throughout the space and institutional investment, which is always a sign of longevity. However, many argue we are still in the visionaries phase, due to current unique wallets below 16% of the population.
Crypto Adoption Curve 2021
In 2021, crypto adoption was massive but still smaller than some expected. In 2021, the global rate of cryptocurrency ownership reached 4% with 300 million users. When comparing those figures to the adoption curve, crypto has barely penetrated the visionaries market.
However, based on the 2020/21 price action and skyrocket of crypto market cap, combined with massive adoption of institutional investment, we can begin to say that cryptocurrency has passed the chasm. Assets under management in funds rose over $40bn in one year, meaning crypto mass adoption may be right around the corner.
Countries With Highest Crypto Adoption
Mass adoption has taken off in most countries, with many poorer countries taking advantage of access to international markets, peer-to-peer trading and DeFi applications.
India has the highest number of cryptocurrency owners, partly due to their whopping population and lenient regulation compared to other populous countries such as China.
It is interesting to see the amount of adoption in countries with a relatively weak national currency when compared to the US dollar. This may mean users are utilizing cryptocurrency as a method of financial freedom and greater buying power.
