European wealthy are buying property with crypto: Why stablecoins are shifting to euro-pegged behind over 100 transactions

Cryptocurrency payments are moving from concept to reality. Over the past year, hundreds of high-net-worth investors in Europe have purchased real estate using cryptocurrencies. Brighty, a crypto payment application, has facilitated over 100 transactions, each ranging from $500,000 to $2.5 million. More notably, these investors’ stablecoin preferences are quietly shifting.

The Implementation of Crypto Payments in Real Estate

Transaction volume has become significant

Nikolay Denisenko, co-founder of Brighty, revealed that the platform has facilitated crypto real estate transactions for hundreds of high-net-worth investors over the past year. Although over 100 transactions may not seem large, they are all high-value deals ranging from $500,000 to $2.5 million, with the total transaction volume possibly reaching hundreds of millions of dollars.

The transactions are mainly concentrated in five European countries and regions: the UK, France, Malta, Cyprus, and Andorra. These areas share common characteristics: either they are mature financial centers (UK, France), or they have a relatively open attitude toward crypto assets (Malta, Cyprus), or they are offshore financial centers (Andorra). The geographic diversity indicates that crypto payments have gained relatively broad acceptance in the European real estate market.

Acceptance among high-net-worth clients is key

The most significant implication of this phenomenon is the participation of high-net-worth clients. These investors are highly sensitive to risk and demand the highest security and stability in payment tools. Their acceptance indicates that crypto payment tools have undergone rigorous market screening and are now viable for large transactions.

The Quiet Shift in Stablecoin Preferences

From USDC to EURC

Behind this transaction data lies a deeper change. Previously, high-net-worth clients mainly used USDC (a USD-pegged stablecoin issued by Circle). However, an increasing number of clients are now turning to euro-pegged stablecoins, such as EURC. This shift may seem simple but actually reflects market maturation.

The Economic Logic Behind the Shift

The reason clients are shifting to euro-pegged stablecoins is straightforward: to avoid conversion costs. When purchasing property in Europe, final settlement is usually in euros. Using USDC (USD-pegged) requires converting to euros first, incurring exchange rate differences and transaction fees. Using EURC directly can eliminate these costs.

This reflects two phenomena:

• Market participants are becoming more cost-conscious
• The demand for localized stablecoins is rising

Deeper Market Implications

Maturity of application scenarios

The evolution of cryptocurrencies from investment assets to payment tools, especially in large, low-frequency, high-value transactions like real estate, indicates that application scenarios are maturing. Real estate transactions involve legal, tax, and fund regulation aspects. The ability to use crypto payments in this field suggests that supporting infrastructure and compliance frameworks are becoming relatively well-developed.

The trend of stablecoin market segmentation

USDC, as the most liquid stablecoin globally, has a market cap of $7.469 billion, accounting for 2.42% of the crypto market. However, this case shows that a single USD-pegged stablecoin is no longer sufficient to meet global payment needs. The demand for localized stablecoins (such as EURC) is rising. This indicates that the stablecoin market may evolve toward diversification.

Possibility of geographic arbitrage

High-net-worth investors conducting property transactions across multiple European countries create cross-border payment scenarios. The cross-border advantage of crypto payments is evident here—compared to traditional bank transfers, crypto payments can facilitate faster, cheaper international transfers and settlements.

Summary

The acceptance of crypto payments by European high-net-worth investors for real estate is not only a breakthrough in application scenarios but also reflects market participants optimizing costs and efficiency. The shift from USDC to EURC demonstrates that the crypto payment market is evolving from “usable” to “user-friendly,” with localization and cost optimization becoming new competitive dimensions. This signal is highly significant for the entire crypto payment ecosystem—true large-scale adoption often stems from users’ spontaneous choices in real-world scenarios.