Crypto Payroll Statistics 2026: 34 Verified Figures

Updated October 2026. Every figure on this page was checked against its source in October 2026.

How many people are paid in crypto? In Pantera Capital's 2024 compensation survey, 9.6% of crypto industry professionals were paid in crypto, and most of them in USDC or USDT. Beyond the industry, 39% of crypto holders and prospective holders in a 15-country YouGov survey for BVNK receive some income in stablecoins, and 57% of independent workers in a 2026 Stripe survey would accept stablecoin payouts if platforms offered them.

Key statistics

• 9.6% of crypto industry professionals were paid in crypto in 2024, according to Pantera Capital.
• USDC made up 63% and USDT 28.6% of crypto salaries in 2024, per Pantera Capital.
• 39% of crypto holders and prospective holders in 15 countries receive income in stablecoins, per a YouGov survey for BVNK (September to October 2025).
• 57% of more than 2,300 independent workers in 20 countries would accept stablecoin payouts, according to Stripe (August 2026).
• 13% of financial institutions and corporates had used stablecoins in June 2025, per EY-Parthenon.
• Deel processed $250 million in crypto payouts in 2025, according to Deel.
• B2B stablecoin payments among firms studied by Artemis passed $6.0 billion a month by mid 2025.
• A cross-border business-to-person payment cost 1.8% on average in 2025, per the Financial Stability Board.
• Only 3.5% of cross-border B2P payment services credited recipients within one hour in 2025, per the FSB.
• Ethereum and Tron held more than 79% of the $302.92 billion in stablecoins tracked by chain on 16 October 2026, per DefiLlama.

How many workers and companies are paid in crypto?

1. 9.6% of crypto industry professionals were paid in crypto in 2024

The Pantera Capital Blockchain Compensation Survey 2024, based on more than 1,600 responses from 77 countries, found that 9.6% of respondents were paid in crypto in 2024. In Pantera's 2023 survey the share was 3%. The sample is crypto industry workers, the group where stablecoin pay is most established.

2. USDC and USDT made up over 90% of crypto salaries in 2024

Among respondents paid in crypto, USDC accounted for 63% of salaries and USDT for 28.6%, according to Pantera Capital. In practice, crypto payroll is dollar stablecoin payroll.

3. 39% of crypto users surveyed in 15 countries receive income in stablecoins

A YouGov survey of 4,658 crypto holders and prospective holders in 15 countries, run for the BVNK Stablecoin Utility Report in September and October 2025, found that 39% get paid in stablecoins. The figure counts payments from family and friends as well as professional income.

4. Stablecoins make up about 35% of income for people paid in them

Respondents who get paid in stablecoins, including freelancers, gig workers and marketplace sellers, receive around 35% of their income this way, according to BVNK Stablecoin Utility Report 2026 (YouGov fieldwork, September to October 2025). The rest of their income arrives through other channels.

5. 57% of independent workers would accept stablecoin payouts

A Stripe survey of more than 2,300 gig workers, contractors, creators, freelancers and marketplace sellers in 20 countries, published in August 2026, found that 57% would accept stablecoin payouts if platforms provided them. Respondents cited the fees and slow settlement of traditional cross-border rails.

6. 18% of independent workers in emerging markets already receive stablecoin payouts

In the same Stripe survey, 18% of independent workers in emerging markets said they currently receive stablecoin payouts. Stripe adds that far more want access.

7. 13% of financial institutions and corporates have used stablecoins

EY-Parthenon surveyed 350 executives in June 2025: 100 at financial institutions and 250 at corporates. 13% had used stablecoins, led by financial institutions at 23%, with corporates at 9%.

8. 54% of non-users expected to adopt stablecoins within 6 to 12 months

In the same EY-Parthenon survey, 54% of organizations not using stablecoins expected to adopt them in the next 6 to 12 months.

Contractor and cross-border payroll

9. 82% of crypto industry professionals worked fully remotely in 2024

Pantera Capital found 82% of its 2024 survey respondents working fully remotely. That was 5.8 percentage points lower than in 2023. Remote teams spread across countries turn each pay run into a set of cross-border payments; DAOs paying contributors face the same pattern.

10. 85% of contractors in Argentina wanted to be paid in US dollars in 2025

According to Deel data cited in Stripe's June 2026 announcement of Deel's stablecoin wallet, 85% of contractors in Argentina wanted to be paid in US dollars rather than pesos in 2025. Stripe notes that in markets like Argentina and Turkey a salary paid in local currency can fluctuate by 20% to 40% of its value in a single year.

11. Deel's stablecoin wallet for contractors is live in 80+ countries

Deel launched its stablecoin wallet for contractors in Argentina and, by August 2026, had extended it to more than 80 countries across Latin America, Africa, the Middle East and Asia Pacific. Contractors who have completed KYC on Deel are eligible.

12. Deel pays more than 10,000 freelancers in 100+ countries in stablecoins

BVNK's partner profile in Artemis's October 2025 stablecoin payments report states that Deel uses BVNK to pay more than 10,000 freelancers in over 100 countries in stablecoins, both for faster payment and as a hedge against local currency inflation.

13. 72% of independent workers in sub-Saharan Africa receive payouts to a digital wallet

In Stripe's 2026 survey, 72% of independent workers in sub-Saharan Africa receive payouts to a digital wallet, and 38% say receiving payouts is their primary stablecoin use case. Stripe links this to low bank access: many workers need digital wallets to receive payments at all.

14. Three in four stablecoin earners say it improved their ability to work internationally

Three in four respondents who get paid in stablecoins told the YouGov survey behind BVNK's Stablecoin Utility Report (September to October 2025) that it has increased their ability to do business internationally.

Payroll providers and payout volume

15. Deel processed $250 million in crypto payouts in 2025

Deel processed $250 million in crypto payouts in 2025, according to its May 2026 announcement of stablecoin salary payouts for full-time employees, published by FF News. The same release describes Deel as trusted by 40,000+ businesses to pay teams across 150+ countries.

16. Rise passed $1 billion in total payroll volume in November 2025

Rise crossed $1 billion in total payroll volume in November 2025, nine months after reaching $500 million, according to a Mercury case study published in March 2026 using Rise's figures. These are company-reported cumulative totals.

17. 45% of Rise's payroll volume runs on USDC

The same Mercury case study reports that 45% of Rise's total payroll volume uses USDC, and that half of Rise contractors who opt for crypto payouts choose USDC.

18. Request Finance reports more than $1 billion processed

Request Finance states on its website that it has processed more than $1 billion for more than 1,500 finance teams that pay vendors, contractors and teams in 190+ countries (checked October 2026). Our comparison of privacy rails for crypto payroll covers how platforms like these can add confidentiality.

19. Bitwage reports $400 million+ in payroll processed for 90,000+ workers

Bitwage reports more than $400 million in payroll processed, 90,000+ registered workers and 4,500+ registered companies, with payment options in nearly 200 countries that include cryptocurrency and stablecoins (checked October 2026).

20. B2B stablecoin payments reached over $6.0 billion a month by mid 2025

Among the 33 payment firms in Artemis's Stablecoin Payments from the Ground Up report, B2B stablecoin volume grew to over $6.0 billion a month by mid 2025. At the start of 2023 it was under $100 million a month. Artemis ties the growth to vendor payments, supplier invoicing and collateral transfers.

21. B2C stablecoin payouts passed $300 million a month by early 2025

Artemis's B2C category covers cases where individuals receive payouts, such as payroll, or make recurring purchases. Among the two B2C firms in its October 2025 study, Binance Pay and Orbital, monthly volume passed $300 million by early 2025. At the start of 2023 it was about $50 million a month.

Creator and affiliate payouts

22. YouTube paid more than $100 billion to creators, artists and media companies in four years

In his January 2026 letter, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan said the platform has paid over $100 billion to creators, artists and media companies in the past four years.

23. Kraken has paid $65 million in affiliate commissions since 2023

Kraken's affiliate program page states that it has paid $65 million in commissions to partners since 2023, across 800+ partners, with payment in USDC or fiat. The program offers up to 50% revenue share on eligible volume, and creator partners are paid in USDC monthly by default or on demand.

24. Stripe's stablecoin payouts reach individuals in 67 countries and regions

Stripe's documentation for stablecoin payouts on Connect, in private preview for US platforms, lists 67 countries and regions where platforms can pay individuals in USDC (checked October 2026). Payouts to companies and non-profits are not yet supported.

25. 76% of marketplace sellers in BVNK's survey reported improved sales volume

In the YouGov survey behind BVNK's Stablecoin Utility Report, 76% of marketplace sellers reported improved sales volume (fieldwork September to October 2025). The survey does not isolate stablecoin payouts as the cause.

Costs and speed versus bank rails

26. Cross-border business-to-person payments cost 1.8% on average in 2025

The Financial Stability Board's October 2025 progress report puts the average cost of a cross-border business-to-person (B2P) payment at 1.8% in 2025, measured on a USD 5,000 transfer using FXC Intelligence data. Payroll and contractor payouts are B2P flows, so this is the baseline cost of a cross-border pay run on existing rails.

27. Only 3.5% of cross-border B2P payment services credited recipients within one hour

According to the FSB, 3.5% of cross-border B2P payment services credited recipients within one hour of initiation in 2025, and 44.3% within one business day (FXC Intelligence data as of March 2025). More than half of these services take longer than one business day.

28. Sending a $200 remittance cost 6.5% on global average in 2025

The FSB's 2025 report, which uses World Bank Remittance Prices Worldwide data, puts the global average cost of sending USD 200 at 6.5% in 2025. The 2024 level was 6.4%.

29. 54.4% of remittance services made funds available within one hour in 2025

The FSB reports that the global share of remittance services making funds available to the recipient within one hour rose to 54.4% in 2025.

30. 41% of organizations using stablecoins report cost savings of at least 10%

Among organizations already using stablecoins in EY-Parthenon's June 2025 survey, 41% reported cost savings of at least 10%, mainly on B2B cross-border payments using USD stablecoins. Corporates named reduced transaction costs (52%) and faster cross-border payments (45%) as their top reasons for interest.

31. Stablecoin earners report 40% average fee savings over traditional remittance

Respondents paid in stablecoins reported average fee savings of 40% compared with traditional remittance methods, according to BVNK's Stablecoin Utility Report (YouGov fieldwork, September to October 2025). The figure is self-reported by recipients.

Salary exposure on public chains

Payroll paid from a public wallet leaves a public record. On-chain payroll and vendor payments expose salaries, pay cadence, organizational structure and vendor relationships. A contractor who receives one payment can look up the paying wallet and read the rest. The figures below show where that money sits and how large the transfers are; our exposure report on public crypto payroll covers what those records reveal.

32. Ethereum and Tron held more than 79% of stablecoins on 16 October 2026

DefiLlama data for 16 October 2026 shows $144.461 billion of stablecoins on Ethereum and $95.047 billion on Tron, out of $302.92 billion tracked by chain: more than 79% combined. On both chains, transfers between wallets, with amounts, are public.

33. USDT carried around 85% of payment volume among firms in Artemis's study

Among the payment firms in Artemis's October 2025 study, USDT held around 85% market share by volume, followed by USDC. Tron was the most used blockchain, followed by Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain and Polygon.

34. Average B2B stablecoin transfers on Tron and Ethereum exceeded $219,000

Average B2B transaction sizes on Tron and Ethereum each exceeded $219,000 among firms in Artemis's October 2025 study. On a public chain, a transfer of that size is readable by any counterparty who knows the paying wallet.

What this means for businesses moving stablecoins

Stablecoin pay now runs through payroll platforms such as Deel and Rise, and the stablecoins themselves mostly sit on public chains: Ethereum and Tron held more than 79% of supply on 16 October 2026, per DefiLlama. On those chains, a contractor, vendor or partner who receives one payment from a company wallet can read that wallet's other payouts, amounts and pay dates. Hinkal Prime is the organization dashboard for private payouts. A finance team uploads a CSV of up to 500 recipients, each row is validated against the organization's balances before anything is signed, members prepare payouts, and owners approve or reject them before the organization wallet signs once for the whole batch (batch payouts, approvals). With Confidential delivery, funds are deposited into the Hinkal smart contract and linked to each recipient's public address, so recipient wallets do not appear as the on-chain receiver and observers see deposits into the contract without attribution to the organization's wallets (Prime overview). Recipients need no Hinkal account.

Compliance sits in the same flow. Every deposit is screened against Chainalysis before it enters the private balance, and viewing keys let the organization share its full transaction history, or a chosen set of transactions or time range, with an auditor, regulator or counterparty; a downloadable transaction history covers reporting (Hinkal compliance). Pay stays confidential to counterparties and open to the people entitled to review it. For a worked example, see how to execute confidential payroll payouts on Ethereum, and for how incoming funds are checked, deposit address screening.

Methodology

This page collects figures on paying employees, contractors, creators and affiliates in stablecoins. Each figure was checked against its publisher in October 2026. Survey figures state their sample, scope and fieldwork or publication date. Figures that companies report about their own activity (Deel, Rise, Request Finance, Bitwage, Kraken, YouTube and Stripe) are labeled as company-reported in the text. Data older than 2024 appears only as a labeled baseline. On-chain supply figures are a DefiLlama snapshot for 16 October 2026. Each figure is attributed to its publisher in the line where it appears.

Frequently asked questions

What percentage of workers are paid in crypto?

Among crypto industry professionals, 9.6% were paid in crypto in 2024, according to Pantera Capital's survey of more than 1,600 respondents in 77 countries. In a broader YouGov survey of crypto holders and prospective holders for BVNK, run in September and October 2025, 39% said they receive some income in stablecoins.

Which stablecoins are used most for payroll?

USDC and USDT. USDC accounted for 63% of crypto salaries and USDT for 28.6% in Pantera Capital's 2024 survey. At the payroll provider Rise, 45% of total payroll volume uses USDC, according to a Mercury case study published in March 2026.

How much does a cross-border payroll payment cost on traditional rails?

A cross-border business-to-person payment cost 1.8% on average in 2025 for a USD 5,000 transfer, and only 3.5% of these payment services credited recipients within one hour, according to the Financial Stability Board.

How much payroll runs through crypto payroll providers?

Deel processed $250 million in crypto payouts in 2025, according to its May 2026 announcement. Rise passed $1 billion in cumulative payroll volume in November 2025, per a Mercury case study. Both figures are company-reported.

Can anyone see crypto payroll on a public blockchain?

On a public chain, transfers between wallets and their amounts are visible to anyone who knows an address. Ethereum and Tron, both public ledgers, held more than 79% of the stablecoin supply on 16 October 2026, per DefiLlama. Payouts sent through Hinkal Prime with Confidential delivery are deposited into the Hinkal smart contract, so recipient wallets do not appear as the on-chain receiver.

Related reading

• Best Privacy Rails for Crypto Payroll Payments
• The Hidden Cost of Public Crypto Payroll: A 2026 Exposure Report
• How DAOs Can Pay Contributors Without Revealing Compensation Data

Learn more about Hinkal Prime.