Survey: Many Americans Believe Cryptocurrency and Regulatory Clarity are Important to the U.S. Economy

As the volume of conversation around cryptocurrency and digital assets continues to grow, we think understanding and evaluating public perceptions of the emerging crypto economy is critical. Our recent polling suggests that many Americans believe crypto will be important to the US economy, are receptive to the idea of increased regulatory oversight of cryptocurrency, and are encouraged by federal approval of digital asset banks.

Our results illustrate that many are interested in the federal government developing a clear and comprehensive plan to oversee the emerging cryptocurrency industry. Incomplete views on the importance of cryptocurrency also reveal the critical role that federally approved partners can play in developing solutions for those who may be less familiar with cryptocurrency.

The survey, conducted by YouGov in collaboration with Anchorage Digital Bank, found that while many Americans are unsure if cryptocurrency will be important to the future economic success of the United States, they are far more likely to agree than disagree that more regulation is needed in order for cryptocurrency to gain acceptance in America:

• A substantial share of Americans (30%) think cryptocurrency will be important to the future economic success of the United States, while slightly more (32%) do not know enough to rate the potential impact of cryptocurrency.
• Americans are more likely to agree that regulatory oversight would help cryptocurrency gain acceptance in the United States. Americans are three times more likely to agree than disagree (39% vs. 13%) that we need more of the activities associated with cryptocurrency to be overseen by regulators to gain acceptance.
• While many are neutral or uncertain about the impact of the OCC charter, Americans are more likely to agree than to disagree that OCC oversight is a step in the right direction for the US economy (32%), knowing their financial institutions work with partners approved by the OCC would give them more confidence in crypto investment (28%) and OCC oversight of a federally chartered digital bank would make them more optimistic about the future of cryptocurrency in the US overall (25%).

Following approval by the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) in early 2021, Anchorage Digital became the first federally-chartered digital asset bank. Throughout the year, increased attention and engagement with cryptocurrency has shown the need for additional regulatory clarity to support consumer protection and confidence in these emerging digital assets. As we move into 2022, we think it is important for trusted private businesses to collaborate with the federal government as they formalize regulatory frameworks surrounding cryptocurrency and digital assets. We are looking forward to working with stakeholders from across the private and public sectors to provide clarity and confidence to businesses, regulators, and most importantly — the American public.

“The results from our survey indicate that Americans are still developing their understanding about the potential impact of cryptocurrency, which gives the federal government a critical role to play in overseeing and approving digital-first financial institutions like Anchorage,” said Anchorage Digital’s Co-Founder and CEO, Nathan McCauley. “As Americans’ exposure to the emerging crypto economy continues to increase in 2022, we believe that — rather than actively resisting any kind of regulatory oversight — crypto companies can further bolster consumer confidence by working hand-in-hand with the federal government.”

Methodology

YouGov conducted an online survey on behalf of Anchorage among a nationally representative sample of n=1,155 US Adults. Fieldwork was executed from December 17th through December 20th, 2021. All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all US adults (aged 18+). Full results of the survey are available here.