GPR Trend 5: Crypto for payments – evolution, not revolution

For years, crypto advocates predicted a payments revolution. While progress has been made, the reality looks different. Direct cryptocurrency payments do continue to grow, but remain a niche part of global commerce – only 0.19% of global e-com value.

Instead, many of the most significant developments are happening behind the scenes, where crypto technologies are increasingly being integrated into existing payment infrastructure.

As highlighted in the Global Payments Report 2026, crypto’s future may be less about replacing traditional payments and more about evolving alongside them.

Crypto has come a long way since the launch of Bitcoin in 2009.

What began as a digital asset experiment has developed into a global ecosystem worth trillions of dollars. Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum offer a decentralized and borderless form of currency.

Despite growing consumer awareness and increasing merchant acceptance, direct crypto payments still represent a very small share of global e-commerce value.

The Global Payments Report forecasts direct crypto acceptance to increase from approximately $15 billion in 2025 to $31 billion by 2030. While that represents strong growth, crypto is still expected to account for less than 1% of global e-commerce value by the end of the decade.

For merchants, this highlights that direct crypto acceptance may be relevant for some audiences but is yet to make its way to the mainstream.

One of the most important developments in crypto payments is the role of traditional payment infrastructure.
Rather than consumers paying merchants directly with cryptocurrency, many transactions now rely on intermediaries that convert crypto into fiat currency before settlement occurs.

Crypto-linked cards are a good example.

Consumers can spend digital assets through familiar card networks, while merchants continue to receive settlement through established payment rails. This creates a simple experience for businesses while allowing consumers to use crypto in everyday transactions.

In many cases, the most successful crypto payment experiences today look and feel remarkably similar to traditional payments.

One area attracting significant attention is the use of stablecoins.

Unlike cryptocurrencies whose values can fluctuate, stablecoins are typically pegged to fiat currencies such as the US dollar. This reduces volatility and makes them potentially more practical for some payment use cases. The demand for stablecoins is driven by their global access, speed, flexibility and cost benefits, coupled with increased regulatory clarity.

Stablecoins are increasingly being explored for:
-Cross-border payments
-Business-to-business transactions
-Payouts

While stablecoins are unlikely to revolutionize payments overnight, they may help address some challenges that have historically limited crypto’s broader adoption.

“As stablecoins, digital assets and traditional payment networks become more connected, crypto payments become more attractive to businesses,” says Nabil Manji, executive lead for enterprise growth and partnerships at Worldpay, now Global Payments. “We’re seeing greater adoption of stablecoins as regulations become clearer, and people begin understanding the benefits, especially for B2B and cross-border payments. Merchants may want to consider the role crypto can play in fortifying their payment stack.”

For most businesses, their customers are unlikely to suddenly start paying with cryptocurrency tomorrow. Instead, merchants should pay attention to how crypto technologies are being integrated into broader payment ecosystems.

Stablecoins, crypto-linked cards and digital asset infrastructure are all examples of innovation happening beneath the surface of consumer payments.

The opportunity may not come from replacing existing payment methods, as once predicted. It may come from improving how money moves through the system.

Continue exploring the Global Payments Report trends

Crypto is just one of the trends shaping the future of commerce.

Explore the rest of our Global Payments Report trend series to discover how payment apps, digital wallets, glocalization and BNPL are transforming payments around the world.