A new two-year research initiative will examine how Americans view financial privacy, the trade-offs they are willing to accept, and how regulation influences their financial behavior. The project brings together the Bitcoin Policy Institute, wallet technology firm Fedi, and Cornell University, combining policy analysis, academic research, and product-level insights.
The study will use quantitative surveys and qualitative interviews to track evolving attitudes toward privacy in everyday financial transactions, trust in institutions, and the use of privacy-enhancing tools. Four semi-annual reports are planned, with the first expected in April 2026, aiming to introduce data-driven evidence into policy discussions.
Interest in the topic has grown as data collection concerns increase nationwide. Recent survey data shows a large majority of U.S. adults worry about how governments and companies handle personal information, while many admit they do not understand how their data is used. At the same time, initiatives such as central bank digital currencies and digital identity systems are raising questions about future levels of financial surveillance.
The project also arrives amid a more aggressive enforcement environment for open-source and privacy-focused developers. Recent legal actions involving non-custodial software have intensified debate over whether writing or maintaining privacy code could expose developers to liability. Against this backdrop, the study aims to inform how financial privacy is protected, regulated, or reshaped in the digital era.
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