A new study looked at 200 countries to analyze how well prepared they are to adopt cryptocurrencies – and the United States has come out on top.

The United States has conducted a new study examining how countries are preparing to adopt bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.

Education platform Crypto Head research examined 200 countries and analyzed their willingness to accept cryptocurrencies using metrics including the number of crypto ATMs in each country and accessibility; government regulatory stance on ownership of cryptocurrencies; Are crypto assets accepted by banks and the number of online searches for cryptocurrencies.

The data released on Thursday covers the period from May 2020 to April 2021 and combines the results for all categories to come up with “crypto readiness values” (out of 10 points).

Countries covered include areas such as Hong Kong. Data from CoinATMRadar has been used to compile ATM metrics, and countries get up to two points for their legislative policies, one point when individuals authorize the use of cryptocurrency and another point that is accepted by banks.

The United States took first place in the rankings with a crypto readiness score of 7.13. The USA is particularly in the lead when it comes to the spread of crypto ATMs – now over 19,000. US law also allows Bitcoin to be owned and used in banks. The study also shows that searches for cryptocurrencies have increased 140% over the past year.

The next crypto-ready country is Cyprus with 6.47. Crypto searches have skyrocketed on the Mediterranean island – around a third of the population carried out a crypto search in the past year. The study found that 33,941 out of 100,000 people searched for cryptocurrencies – the highest level of interest worldwide.

But even Hong Kong with 6.27 is not far behind, with 7.5 million inhabitants and an extremely high interest in cryptocurrencies.

Though it may now be crypto-friendly, Hong Kong is increasingly seeing China maintain its control of the territory – and the Chinese government is now cracking down on cryptocurrencies. And since the study was conducted, regulators in the UK, the fifth crypto-ready country studied, have increased the heat on crypto businesses. And in the United States, regulators are sprinting to develop comprehensive regulations for cryptocurrencies.

Studies are struggling to keep up with rapidly changing regulations in this fledgling asset class.

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