New Survey: Americans Strongly Support Prohibiting Crypto Companies from Offering Yield-Like Rewards for Holding Stablecoin

As the U.S. Senate prepares to consider the Clarity Act creating the first-ever rules for digital assets like stablecoin, a new survey conducted by Morning Consult on behalf of the American Bankers Association finds that consumers strongly support protecting local lending and the financial system from the risks associated with allowing interest-like rewards on stablecoins. Key takeaways from the survey include:

• By a 3-to-1 margin (57% vs. 19%), consumers agree that Congress should prohibit crypto companies from being able to offer interest-like rewards for holding stablecoin if there is a risk it could draw away deposits from local banks and reduce the amount of funds available to banks to lend in the community and support economic growth
• By a 4-to-1 margin (61% vs. 15%), consumers agree that in establishing the first-ever rules for digital assets like cryptocurrencies and stablecoins in the U.S., Congress and the administration should be cautious and not take any action that could undermine our existing financial system, especially the community banks that help drive local economic activity in some parts of the country
• 7 in 10 consumers (69%) say they would be concerned if banks had less funding available to make loans to individuals and businesses in their communities in the same manner they do today, the very risk posed by current language in the Clarity Act

• 3 in 5 (58%) say digital assets are not relevant to their day-to-day financial life
• Only 24% say stablecoins, cryptocurrencies and other digital assets could provide meaningful benefits for people like them
• Consumer adoption of digital assets (like Bitcoin or stablecoin such as USDC) or non-fungible tokens (NFTs) remains low: 
  • Only 17% currently own digital assets
  • Only 28% have ever owned digital assets
  • 6 in 10 are unlikely to buy, hold or use digital assets in next 12 months

ABA released an accompanying infographic highlighting these survey results. The full results for these survey questions are as follows:

When asked “Do you agree or disagree with this following statement? Congress should prohibit crypto companies from being able to offer interest-like rewards for holding stablecoin if there is a risk it could draw away deposits from local banks and reduce the amount of funds available to banks to lend in the community and support economic growth.” consumers provided the following answers:

• Strongly agree – 28%
• Somewhat agree – 29%
• Somewhat disagree – 13%
• Strongly disagree – 6%
• Don't know – 23%

When asked “Do you agree or disagree with this following statement? In establishing the first-ever rules for digital assets like crypto currencies and stablecoins in the U.S., Congress and the administration should be cautious and not take any action that could undermine our existing financial system, especially the community banks that help drive local economic activity in some parts of the country.” consumers provided the following answers:

• Strongly agree – 31%
• Somewhat agree – 30%
• Somewhat disagree – 11%
• Strongly disagree – 4%
• Don't know – 24%

When asked “How concerned would you be, if at all, if banks had less funding available to make loans to individuals and businesses in their communities in the same manner they do today?” consumers provided the following answers:

• Very concerned – 34%
• Somewhat concerned – 35%
• Not too concerned – 13%
• Not concerned at all–7%
• Don’t know – 10%

When asked “How relevant are stablecoins, cryptocurrencies and other digital assets to your day-to-day financial life?” consumers provided the following answers:

• Very relevant – 13%
• Somewhat relevant – 13%
• Not too relevant – 24%
• Not at all relevant – 35%
• Don’t know – 16%

When asked “Which comes closer to your view?” consumers provided the following answers:

• Stablecoins, cryptocurrencies and other digital assets could provide meaningful benefits for people like me – 24%
• Stablecoins, cryptocurrencies and other digital assets do not seem relevant or useful for people like me – 43%\
• Don't know – 33%

When asked “Do you own any digital assets such as cryptocurrencies (like Bitcoin or stablecoin such as USDC) or non-fungible tokens (NFTs)?” consumers provided the following answers:

• Yes, I currently own digital assets – 17%
• No, I have previously but do not currently own digital assets – 11%
• No, I have never owned digital assets – 65%
• Don’t know – 7%

When asked “How likely are you to buy, hold or use digital assets such as cryptocurrencies in the next 12 months?” consumers provided the following answers:

• Very likely – 13%
• Likely – 17%
• Unlikely – 18%
• Very Unlikely – 40%
• Don't know – 12%

About the Survey
This poll was conducted by Morning Consult on behalf of the American Bankers Association from May 22-24, 2026, among a national sample of 2,004 adults. The interviews were conducted online and the data were weighted to approximate a target sample of adults based on age, race/ethnicity, gender, educational attainment, and region. Results from the full survey have a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points.