The United States is the world’s most “crypto-ready” country, according to new research published by crypto education platform Crypto Head.
Crypto Head’s 2021 Crypto Ready Index considered the number of crypto ATMs in each country and their accessibility, the legality of crypto and whether banks can use it, and the number of online searches for crypto-related terms in calculating a “crypto-ready” index for 200 countries and territories.
The United States ranked first, with a crypto-ready score of 7.13 out of 10. Cyprus ranked second and Singapore third, both scoring under 6.50. To be sure, the study is limited in scope, failing to touch on a number of factors that could shape a country’s readiness for wider-spread usage of cryptocurrencies, including its tax laws and wider regulatory environment.
According to data collected by Crypto Head, the U.S. has 17,436 crypto ATMs – nearly 16,000 more than the second-ranked country in this category, Canada. That number is growing rapidly in the U.S. as bitcoin ATM companies like Coin Cloud rapidly expand installations nationwide. The rise underscores bitcoin’s increasing popularity as a means of payment.
Alongside the number of ATMs, Crypto Head also looked at the number of people per ATM. The United States placed first here as well, with a crypto ATM for every 19,023 people, compared to Canada’s second-place ratio of one ATM for every 26,265 people. Japan ranked last with a single bitcoin ATM for its 126 million people, although 24 countries did not have a crypto ATM.
Crypto Head also awarded the U.S. and 39 other countries with particularly favorable legal environments for crypto a maximum two points – one point if crypto was legal to own and one point if it was allowed to be used in banks.
Lastly, Crypto Head also examined the number of cryptocurrency online searches compared to the previous year’s data to indicate rising interest among each country’s population.
Cyprus ranked first with nearly 34,000 crypto searches for every 100,000 people – an almost 137% increase from the year before. In many countries, interest in crypto is also growing rapidly. Romania saw the largest year-on-year increase in crypto searches at 331%, with countries like Greece, Canada, the United Kingdom and Saudi Arabia not far behind.