Interest in crypto remains low but is growing fast

Use of and interest in cryptocurrency remains far from mainstream, but it's growing at a sizable clip. Companies like PayPal, Square and most recently Tesla are helping by launching crypto payment programs.

Driving the news: A survey from data firm CivicScience provided first to Axios shows that since the third quarter of 2019 the number of people investing in cryptocurrencies has risen 50% — to 9% from 6% — and the number of people who intend to use crypto has more than doubled, rising to 7% from 3%.

• CivicScience's data also show that while the percentage of respondents who say they are not interested in crypto has remained the same, the percentage who say they have never heard of it has dropped from 21% in 2019 to 18% as of the end of January.

One level deeper: The survey found that 6% of respondents say they are likely to purchase cryptocurrency through PayPal, with past experience in crypto investment largely dictating interest.

• Those who have previously invested in cryptocurrency are the most likely to purchase it through PayPal (26%).
• Those who intend to invest in cryptocurrency are only slightly less likely to say they will purchase through PayPal (25%).
• Most who have never invested (including those unaware of cryptocurrency) are unlikely to purchase crypto through PayPal (98%).