Advertisement
From Coffees to Clothes: 70% of EU Crypto Payments Fuel Retail and Dining, Oobit Report Reveals
- 70% of EU crypto payments target retail and dining with an average of $8.36 per transaction, while 26% go to tourism and ~1.5% each to government services, healthcare, and entertainment.
- USDT dominates 92% of transactions, while crypto adoption in Europe has surged 44% YoY.
According to the cryptocurrency payments platform Oobit, 70% of crypto payments in the European Union are used for retail, food and beverage purchases, with all transactions denominated in US dollars.
As per the company’s report, on average, payments made using the Oobit app are US$8.36 (AU$13), while users deposit around US$85 (AU$133).
Besides retail and food-related expenses, 26% of payments go toward tourism activities such as lodging, travel and aviation. Moreover, government services, digital payments, and miscellaneous purchases like healthcare and entertainment each account for about 1.5% of total payments.
USDT Is Still King
Funny enough, the report highlights that 92% of transactions were made using the USDT stablecoin, despite recent regulatory drama under MiCA regulations, which took full effect on December 30, 2024. This increased adoption is believed to be driven by the growing acceptance of digital assets in the EU, bolstered by governments passing crypto-friendly legislation.
Chainalysis data also supports this trend, showing that crypto adoption in Central, Northern and West Europe has grown by 44% year-over-year. In this region, the stablecoin market for transactions under US$1M (AU$1.57M) is expanding at a rate 2.5 times faster than in North America.
Technological advances, including the Lightning Network and crypto debit cards that offer the popular Cryptoback rewards feature, are partly responsible for facilitating faster and more efficient micropayments using Bitcoin and stablecoins.
In a certain sense, this means that crypto has evolved from being seen as a speculative asset or meme to becoming an actual viable means of everyday exchange, and though it is at a small scale, it still represents progress.
This shift contributes to the broader worldwide adoption of cryptocurrencies as consumers increasingly embrace digital payments for small transactions.
Related: Trump’s Crypto Council Forecasts US Stablecoin Bill Within Two Months
Advertisement
Author
José Oramas
José is a journalist and translator with a keen interest in blockchain and cryptocurrencies.
