Signs that cryptocurrencies are transitioning from speculative assets to actual payment methods are emerging across the United States.
The convergence between merchant adoption, major banks entering the Bitcoin business, and significant investments in payment infrastructure is fueling predictions that 2026 could be the turning point for crypto payments.
39% of merchants already accept crypto
According to a survey published on January 27 by PayPal and the National Cryptocurrency Association (NCA), 39% of U.S. merchants already accept payments in cryptocurrencies. Meanwhile, 84% expect that crypto payments will become the norm in the next five years.
Consumer demand is driving this adoption. 88% of merchants report receiving requests from customers related to the use of crypto for payments, and 69% say customers want to pay in crypto at least once a month. Regarding generations, interest from Millennials (77%) and Gen Z (73%) is huge. In particular, small businesses record the highest rate of requests from Gen Z, at 82%, much higher than medium-sized companies (67%) and large enterprises (65%).
By sector, hospitality and tourism lead with 81%, followed by digital goods, gaming, and luxury retail (76%) and retail and e-commerce (69%).
"What we see both in the data and in conversations with our customers is that crypto payments are moving beyond the experimental phase, entering everyday commerce," said May Zabaneh, Vice President and General Manager of Crypto at PayPal. "When crypto payments are offered in ways that feel as familiar as those with cards or online payments, they become a powerful growth tool."
A surprising statistic is that 90% of merchants stated they would accept crypto if the setup process were as simple as that for credit cards.
"These data clearly demonstrate that the interest in crypto is not the problem, but rather the understanding," said Stu Alderoty, President of the NCA. "We are working together to bridge the knowledge gap and show how crypto can be simple, accessible, and easy to use for both businesses and everyday consumers."
60% of major U.S. banks are entering Bitcoin
Traditional finance is also moving quickly. According to January 2025 data from the crypto financial platform River, 60% of the top 25 U.S. banks by assets—15 institutions—have already launched or announced custody or trading services for Bitcoin.
The PNC Group has launched both custody services and trading services. JPMorgan Chase, Charles Schwab, and UBS have announced trading services, while Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and Wells Fargo are offering services to high-net-worth clients. American Express has introduced a card with Bitcoin rewards.
Just a year ago, most of the Wall Street giants still maintained a wait-and-see attitude. Now they are rushing into the crypto sector—a clear sign that demand from institutional investors and high-net-worth individuals has reached levels too significant to be ignored.
Mesh reaches unicorn status as capital flows into infrastructure.
Investments in payment infrastructure are accelerating. The crypto payment network Mesh announced on January 27 that it raised $75 million in a Series C round, achieving unicorn status with a valuation of $1 billion. Total funding has now exceeded $200 million.
Dragonfly Capital led the round, with participation from Paradigm, Coinbase Ventures, and SBI Investment. Notably, part of the funds was settled using stablecoins. Mesh described this as "the ultimate proof that global institutions are now confidently relying on regulation via blockchain, when guaranteed enterprise-level execution, verifiability, and controls are in place."
Mesh's core technology, SmartFunding, enables an "Any-to-Any" structure: consumers pay with any cryptocurrency they have—whether it's Bitcoin or Solana—while merchants receive instant settlement in their preferred stablecoin (USDC, PYUSD) or in fiat currency. The network today reaches over 900 million users worldwide.
"The winners of the next decade will not be those who issue the most tokens, but those who build the network of networks capable of rendering traditional card infrastructures obsolete," said Bam Azizi, co-founder and CEO of Mesh.
Will 2026 be the turning point?
These three data points all point in one direction. Consumer demand for crypto payments—especially among younger generations—has reached a critical mass. Merchants and traditional financial institutions are responding. And significant capital is flowing into infrastructure to support it all.
Challenges remain. As highlighted by the PayPal-NCA survey, simplicity remains the main obstacle. But it is encouraging that companies like Mesh focus on simplifying everything behind the scenes and offering a user experience identical to traditional payments.
Cryptocurrencies are moving from the speculative world to the infrastructural one. 2026 could be the year when this transition really begins.
