Wharton Cryptocurrency Report Locked Behind Paywall as Institutional Interest in Digital Assets Grows

Wharton Cryptocurrency Report Locked Behind Paywall as Institutional Interest in Digital Assets Grows

A new consumer cryptocurrency confidence report from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania has been published but remains inaccessible to the public, password-protected on the institution's Knowledge at Wharton platform as of February 20, 2026.

The timing of the report's release—and its restricted access—comes as finance chiefs at corporations and institutional investors continue wrestling with how to approach digital assets on their balance sheets and in their treasury operations. The report's title, "Consumer Cryptocurrency Confidence Report 2025," suggests it contains data on retail sentiment toward digital currencies, though the specific findings remain unavailable to readers without credentials.

The password protection represents an unusual distribution strategy for Knowledge at Wharton, which typically publishes business research and faculty insights openly to reach CFOs, finance professionals, and business leaders. The platform's standard content includes articles, podcasts, and special reports on topics ranging from AI and data analytics to finance and accounting, all freely accessible to subscribers of its weekly or monthly newsletters.

What makes the restricted access particularly notable is the subject matter. Consumer confidence in cryptocurrency has become a leading indicator that finance executives monitor when evaluating whether to hold digital assets, accept crypto payments, or develop blockchain-based financial products. Retail sentiment often precedes institutional moves in the digital asset space, making consumer confidence data valuable for corporate treasury planning.

The report appears to analyze 2025 data, positioning it as a retrospective look at consumer attitudes during a year when cryptocurrency markets experienced significant volatility and regulatory scrutiny intensified. For CFOs considering digital asset strategies in 2026, understanding how consumer confidence evolved through 2025 could inform risk assessments and stakeholder communication plans.

Wharton's decision to gate the content raises questions about whether the research contains commercially sensitive findings, is part of a paid research subscription service, or represents a shift in how academic institutions monetize business intelligence. The school has not publicly explained the access restrictions.

Finance leaders seeking the report's findings will need to contact Wharton directly or wait to see if the institution releases a public summary. The password protection means that even Knowledge at Wharton's regular newsletter subscribers—who receive weekly or monthly roundups of the platform's content—cannot access the cryptocurrency confidence data without additional credentials.

The restricted distribution stands in contrast to Wharton's other recent publications, including its "Future of Finance Series" and "Nano Tools for Leaders Series," which remain openly available. Whether this signals a broader trend toward paywalled financial research from academic institutions remains to be seen, but CFOs accustomed to freely accessible business school insights may need to adjust their expectations—and budgets—accordingly.