Cornell Bitcoin Club

Week 10 is live — and with it, the conclusion of our 10-week data release. Across 25 countries, people are weighing whether bitcoin is a tool for financial freedom — or not.

We asked: What drives adoption? What holds it back? And what would it take to reach the next bitcoin users?

Key insights:

• Belief in Bitcoin’s financial freedom potential is highest in 🇳🇬 Nigeria, 🇻🇪 Venezuela, and 🇺🇦 Ukraine
• Intent to use bitcoin is strongest in 🇦🇪 UAE, 🇨🇳 China, 🇮🇳 India, and 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia
• The top motivators to own bitcoin among non-owners are more money (42%), more knowledge (35%), and easier usability (32%)
• Education and accessibility appear to matter more than regulation or reputation

Bitcoin’s path forward isn’t guaranteed — it’s shaped by perception, practicality, and participation.

📙 Read Week 10 and download the full series of global findings here: https://www.cornellbitcoinclub.org/repository/week10

Week 9: Perceptions of Bitcoin (Part II)

In Week 8, we explored how people imagine bitcoin’s future. This week, we turn to the present: how do people actually see bitcoin today? Across 25 countries, the data shows a mix of hesitation, uncertainty, and opportunity.

Key findings:

• 30% say bitcoin is easy to buy or sell; most remain neutral on usability
• 25–30% agree bitcoin protects privacy or is prone to fraud
• 34% find bitcoin difficult to understand

Fewer than 20% feel they have the resources or knowledge to use it. Perceptions remain cautious — but not closed. Building trust, improving usability, and expanding education may prove just as important to adoption as price or policy.

📙 Read Week 9 here: https://www.cornellbitcoinclub.org/repository/week9

Week 8: Perceptions of Bitcoin (Part I)

Over the past 7 weeks, we’ve looked at bitcoin adoption through a past and present lens. Now, we turn to the future:

👉 How do respondents across 25 countries perceive bitcoin—and the likelihood of a Bitcoin standard?

Key findings:

• In 16/25 countries, a majority feel bitcoin is “replacing currencies”
• In 17/25, a majority think bitcoin could become the main form of payment
• In 16/25 countries, Stablecoins are viewed as more plausible than bitcoin for payments
• Skepticism is concentrated in stable, high-income countries, frequently linked to concerns about volatility.

📙 Read Week 8 here: https://www.cornellbitcoinclub.org/repository/week8

Week 7: Trust & Risk — How Bitcoin Stacks Up

Across 25 countries, trust in bitcoin averages 4.67/10, placing it below traditional assets such as gold and real estate.

🔸 In 10 countries, reported trust in bitcoin exceeds trust in government (including 🇧🇷 Brazil, 🇳🇬 Nigeria, 🇹🇷 Turkey, 🇺🇦 Ukraine). 🔸 Perceived risk remains high relative to most other assets, which may constrain broader adoption. 🔸 Responses to questions about fraud, privacy, and service providers were dominated by “neutral,” suggesting uncertainty rather than clear endorsement or rejection. 🔸 Higher reported financial stress often coincides with higher levels of bitcoin ownership and trust, though correlation does not imply causation.

Overall, bitcoin’s position is shaped less by uniform acceptance or rejection and more by patterns of uncertainty, comparative trust, and local economic context.

📙 Read Week 7 and download all charts here: https://www.cornellbitcoinclub.org/repository/week7

#Bitcoin #GlobalStudy #BitcoinResearch #FinancialInclusion

Why do people choose Bitcoin?

Across 25 countries, we found that adoption is driven by more than just investment.

From personal freedom in 🇺🇦 Ukraine to inflation protection in 🇻🇪 Venezuela and cross-border payments in 🇮🇳 India, bitcoin use reflects unmet needs in traditional systems.

This week, we explore the why behind global Bitcoin adoption, and what it reveals about trust, access, and economic agency.

📙 Read Week 4: https://www.cornellbitcoinclub.org/repository/week4

For What—and How—Do People Use Bitcoin?

Is bitcoin being saved? Spent? Stored? All of the above?

In Week 3 of the Cornell Global Bitcoin Adoption study, we asked: What does it actually mean to “use” bitcoin?

Across 24 countries: 💰 Most allocate less than 25% of their savings to bitcoin 💸 1 in 3 owners transact with bitcoin weekly 🔐 Most don’t understand the difference between custodial and non-custodial wallets

What we found is that use varies by context. In some places, bitcoin is an investment. In others, it’s a lifeline. This isn’t just about transactions—it’s about beliefs, behaviors, and economic agency.

📙 Read Week 3 here: https://www.cornellbitcoinclub.org/repository/week3

📢 Over the next 10 weeks, we’re sharing findings from one of the most comprehensive global studies ever conducted on bitcoin and financial freedom supported by Human Rights Foundation (HRF) and The Reynolds Foundation.

✅ 25,000 people 🌍 25 countries 📊 250 interviews

1️⃣ question: What does bitcoin reveal about the state of trust, agency, and economic possibility in the world today?

For the first time in recent history, we’re watching a monetary system spread not by force but by choice.

Not through war. Not through colonization. Not through central banks or capital controls.

But through voluntary adoption, one phone, one wallet, one person at a time.

What does that mean for the future of money and freedom?

🔗 Read more: https://www.cornellbitcoinclub.org/blog/week0-setting-the-stage

#Bitcoin #BitcoinResearch #BitcoinAdoptionStudy #FinancialFreedom #LayerZero