Why Most Americans Don’t Feel Crypto Is Safe

In partnership with

Beat Black Friday with BILL

Get the deal of the year for you and your business when you choose the BILL Divvy Card + expense management software, AND an exclusive gift when you take a demo. Move over, Black Friday.

Choose BILL Spend & Expense to help your business:

• Reap rewards with reliable cash back rates

• Create virtual cards that help protect from fraud & overspending

• Control spending with customizable budget controls

Take a demo by the end of the month and take home a Nintendo Switch, Apple AirPods Pro, Samsung 50" TV, or Xbox Series S—your choice¹ .

Request a demo

¹ Terms and Conditions apply. See offer page for more details.
BILL Divvy Card is issued by Cross River Bank, Member FDIC, and is not a deposit product.

Cryptocurrency burst onto the scene with the promise of financial liberation—a new system untethered from banks, regulators, and bureaucratic control. It sounded like the future: a decentralized way to store and transfer value that wasn’t beholden to government intervention or susceptible to inflation. Yet, despite the promise, most Americans aren’t buying in. Recent surveys from Pew Research reveal that about 75% of Americans aware of crypto lack confidence in its reliability, with only a small fraction (6%) expressing strong trust in its safety.

At the core of this distrust is the issue of volatility. Crypto markets swing wildly, driven by speculation, hype, and the tweets of high-profile figures. For average Americans, these dramatic fluctuations don’t inspire confidence—they signal risk, instability, and the very real possibility of losing money fast. This volatility contrasts sharply with what most people look for in a financial asset: stability and predictability. While younger investors may see this as an opportunity to profit from price swings, for the average household, it’s a warning sign.

Then there’s the constant cycle of high-profile scandals and collapses. Major players like FTX, Celsius, and Terra-Luna have crumbled due to mismanagement, fraud, or sheer lack of oversight, often leaving investors with enormous losses. These events aren’t just headlines—they shape public perception by painting a picture of an unstable and often corrupt system. If these multi-billion-dollar companies can fail, taking with them the hard-earned money of thousands, it’s reasonable for the public to question the reliability of the entire industry.

Regulatory uncertainty further complicates crypto’s image. The U.S. and other governments are still figuring out how to handle crypto, and without clear rules, the market remains a breeding ground for manipulation and scams. Unlike traditional investments like stocks or bonds, crypto doesn’t benefit from protective regulations, meaning that when something goes wrong, investors often have little recourse.

However, it’s worth noting that while older generations are more skeptical, younger Americans see crypto as a new opportunity. Raised in the digital age, many millennials and Gen Z investors feel more comfortable with digital assets and view crypto as a pathway to wealth that traditional finance hasn’t offered. To them, the risk is a natural part of pursuing outsized returns and breaking into a system that often feels rigged in favor of the already wealthy.

In my view, if crypto is to gain mainstream trust, the industry must focus less on moonshots and more on stability. True, crypto’s decentralized nature and potential are exciting, but for the average person, financial products must first be safe. Real trust doesn’t come from technology alone—it comes from stability, transparency, and the security of knowing that your investment is protected. Until these qualities are present in crypto, skepticism will likely remain high, and mainstream adoption a distant goal.