Visa Says 46% of Asia-Pacific Consumers May Use Stablecoins Within Five Years

Stablecoin use in Asia-Pacific remains limited, but interest in using the tokens for payments and remittances is rising quickly.

According to Visa's Consumer 360 survey released on October 19, 16% of consumers in the Asia-Pacific region said they had used stablecoins in the past year. Another 46% said they may use them within the next five years.

The survey was conducted in June and July among 14,250 consumers ages 18 to 65 across 14 Asia-Pacific markets, including South Korea, Japan, China and Singapore.

Respondents cited online shopping, travel and cross-border payments as potential uses for stablecoins, in addition to trading cryptocurrencies. Forty-nine percent said stablecoins could be widely used for cross-border remittances within the next five years. Vietnam and India showed the highest intent to use them, at 67% each.

Awareness outpaced understanding. While 66% of respondents said they were familiar with stablecoins, only 6% said they accurately understood how they work.

Among respondents who were aware of stablecoins, 49% believed they could only be used to trade other virtual assets. Another 41% of all respondents incorrectly thought stablecoins continue to rise in value. Stablecoins are designed to maintain a stable value by being pegged to fiat currencies such as the U.S. dollar.

Security concerns and a lack of information were the main reasons consumers hesitated to use them. Among respondents who knew about stablecoins but had never used them, 38% cited concerns about fraud and 36% said they lacked relevant knowledge.

Trust was highest in government- and central bank-related institutions, at 27%, followed by traditional financial companies such as banks, at 26%.

Visa said stablecoins will need more than broader awareness to become an everyday payment method. Consumers also need an environment that is easy to understand and feels safe to use. Links to familiar payment services will be especially important, it added.