Ecommerce crypto payments volume surges, CoinGate says

The report highlights how the number of merchants that accept cryptocurrency payments is on the rise even when markets are experiencing a significant downturn, while the number of ecommerce crypto transactions has also been growing at a steady pace. When it comes to the most popular cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin accounted for nearly half of all transactions in 2022, which is 7.6% less than in 2021.

This suggests that altcoins have affected Bitcoin’s dominance in payments. The report further details that the second most popular cryptocurrency used for shopping in 2022 was USDT, with 14.8% adoption, followed by Ethereum (10.9%), Litecoin (9.6%) and TRON (5.8%). As for CoinGate’s Lightning Network, the node grew by 97% and accounted for 6.29% of all orders paid in Bitcoin. In 2021, it accounted for 4.53% of Bitcoin orders.

Crypto payments and merchants

CoinGate reports that there has been a 48% increase in newly registered merchants in 2022 compared to 2021, including entities such as NordVPN, which has adopted crypto payments. Merchants are willing to accept crypto payments in order to attract the unbanked as well as privacy-conscious customers. 

Payment processors can keep crypto price volatility in check by allowing instant settlements to fiat currencies. The report mentions Hostinger, a company that supports different types of cryptocurrencies for payments and leverages CoinGate’s payment processing services. 

In September 2022, UK-based fraud prevention company Ondato has partnered CoinGate and started accepting various types of cryptocurrencies as payment for their services. Following this partnership, businesses could pay for KYC and AML services using digital assets through CoinGate’s platform.  

According to data released by Deloitte, businesses that accept digital currencies can grow their customer bases by 46% and gain an 87% competitive advantage in the market. Ondato recognised the need to provide this extra payment option in order to allow both its current customers and potential consumers in the cryptocurrency industry to benefit from more payment options. 

According to research by Allied Market Research, the global cryptocurrency market size was valued at around USD 1.5 billion in 2020 and is expected to reach close to USD 5 billion by 2030, which shows the continuous interest in alternative payment systems and stablecoins.