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Cryptocurrency payment service BitPay processed 608,000 transactions in 2024 as more holders showed a willingness to spend their digital assets during the bull market. 

According to BitPay’s Decrypted 2024 report, Litecoin (LTC) dominated the transaction volumes on its platform with 201,165 payments. Bitcoin (BTC) transactions were a distant second at 130,250 payments, followed by Ether (ETH) at 56,356 payments.

BitPay said that “2024 was all about putting crypto to work,” showing that the asset class “isn’t just for holding—it’s also for spending.” 

The report showed a strong correlation between crypto prices and spending, with users cashing out their holdings to pay for luxury goods, jewelry, electronics and precious metals. Transactions for these items grew between 39% and 205% compared to the previous year. 

On a national level, the United States dominated BitPay payments, accounting for more than 76% of the total transactions. 

BitPay lists the most popular transactions on its platform in 2024. Source: BitPay

BitPay allows merchants to accept crypto payments and receive settlements in their local currencies. The firm is headquartered in the United States and the majority of its customers are located in the country. 

Crypto payments growth: A slow grind

Although Bitcoin and crypto have made strong inroads as investment vehicles, the asset class has lagged as a viable payment method. 

Using data from Deutsche Bank, American Banker reported that crypto retail transactions accounted for just 3% of payments between 2021 and 2023.

Perhaps ironically, it’s the growth of stablecoins — digital versions of fiat currencies — that is boosting the adoption of crypto as a payment rail. 

For example, crypto payment processor CoinGate reported a 29.6% increase in crypto transactions in 2024, with stablecoins accounting for more than a third of total transactions. 

Stablecoin usage continues to surge, especially in the last two years. Source: Coingate

In a December feature on Cointelegraph Magazine, Monty Munford said centralized stablecoins may be convenient, but they undermine the true spirit of crypto as a decentralized protocol. 

“Major stablecoins, therefore, require a lot more trust from users than Bitcoin, but they seem happy to do so,” said Mumford.

Stablecoins currently command a total market capitalization of $206 billion, according to DefiLlama. The two largest stablecoins — issued by Tether and Circle, respectively — account for nearly 89% of that total.

Magazine: How crypto laws are changing across the world in 2025

According to BlockBeats, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) of Nigeria announced on December 17 that nearly 800 individuals have been arrested nationwide in connection with a cryptocurrency romance scam. The arrests took place in a seven-story building, which is believed to be a hub for criminal activities. EFCC's Olukoyede noted that the building could easily be mistaken for the headquarters of a financial institution.

The suspects have not yet been formally charged, and the EFCC has not disclosed the amount of money stolen from victims by the romance scam network. Inside the building, authorities discovered high-end desktop computers and, on the fifth floor alone, found 500 SIM cards.

The operation involved staff equipped with computers and mobile phones who underwent a two-week training program. This training was designed to teach them how to impersonate foreign women in romance scam chats and persuade victims to invest in their employer's cryptocurrency scam.