Over 40% of all crypto trades in Latin America involve the USDT stablecoin, signaling a waning interest in Bitcoin, which is even trailing XRP in the region’s top trading pairs. Stablecoins are more popular in Latin America (LATAM) than Bitcoin, with stablecoin-to-fiat trading pairs accounting for more than 60% of the top 10 trade volume in the region, according to Kaiko, a blockchain analytics firm.
This growing dominance of stablecoins like USDT has prompted local central banks to consider issuing central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), though their competitive effectiveness remains uncertain. Surprisingly, Bitcoin lags behind XRP in LATAM, with the XRP/MXN trading pair surpassing BTC/BRL by at least a billion dollars in turnover, largely due to XRP’s partnership with Bitso crypto exchange.
Despite these shifts, Binance dominates the market in terms of turnover, particularly in stablecoin trades. The Brazilian crypto market is rapidly growing, with monthly BRL trade volumes averaging $1.3 billion in 2024, up from $0.7 billion in 2023. However, Binance’s dominance appears to be waning as trade volumes on Mercado Bitcoin, Brazil’s largest crypto exchange, more than doubled in 2024, driven by activity in both Bitcoin and altcoins.
The shift towards stablecoins and the potential introduction of CBDCs highlights a significant transformation in LATAM’s crypto landscape, indicating broader implications for the region’s financial ecosystem.
