Bitso’s latest Crypto Landscape in Latin America 2025 report highlights a major shift in how digital assets are being used across the region. According to the company, nearly 40% of all crypto purchases in Latin America during 2025 involved dollar-linked stablecoins such as USDT and USDC. The findings were based on data from nearly 10 million customers across key markets including Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico.
Stablecoins Gain Ground Across the Region
The report shows that USDC accounted for 23% of all purchases, putting it ahead of Bitcoin at 18% and USDT at 16%. Bitso interprets this as a sign that users are increasingly prioritizing financial stability and liquidity over short-term speculation. In practical terms, the data suggests that crypto in Latin America is being used less as a purely speculative asset class and more as a tool for savings, payments, and cross-border transfers.
This trend appears across the region, although local dynamics vary. Argentina stands out as the most dollar-focused market, with USDC and USDT together making up more than 70% of all crypto purchased. That pattern reflects strong demand for access to dollar-denominated assets in an economy long shaped by currency instability and inflation pressure.
Brazil presents a more balanced market structure. There, stablecoins represented 34% of total purchases, while Bitcoin led with 22%. Colombia and Mexico fall somewhere between those two poles, showing interest in both stable-value assets and more traditional crypto exposure.
From Speculation to Financial Utility
Bitso says the findings point to a broader structural change in the region’s digital asset economy. Rather than embracing stablecoins mainly for decentralization or technical innovation, many users appear to be turning to them for a simpler reason: access to a more reliable store of value and a practical medium for transactions. In markets where local currencies can be volatile and traditional financial systems may not fully meet consumer needs, stablecoins are increasingly serving as everyday financial infrastructure.
The report describes this as a shift away from crypto being viewed primarily as a speculative instrument. Instead, it is increasingly being used for savings, payments, and cross-border value transfer. That framing is particularly relevant in Latin America, where remittances, inflation hedging, and access to dollar exposure are often central to household and business financial behavior.
Bitcoin Remains the Portfolio Anchor
Even with stablecoins taking a larger share of purchases, Bitcoin remains the most widely held crypto asset in Latin America. Bitso found that BTC still represents 52% of all portfolios in the region. That figure was down by only 1% year over year, suggesting that Bitcoin continues to hold a durable position as the core long-term asset for many users.
This balance between stablecoins and Bitcoin is one of the report’s most important takeaways. Stablecoins are increasingly used as instruments for payments, liquidity management, and protection from local currency volatility, while Bitcoin continues to serve as a reserve asset within crypto portfolios. In other words, users are not necessarily choosing one over the other; instead, they appear to be assigning each asset class a distinct role.
That division of use helps explain why Bitcoin can remain dominant in holdings even as stablecoins lead in recent purchase activity. It also underscores a maturing market in which users are behaving less like short-term traders and more like consumers managing financial risk and access.
Country Differences Reveal Local Needs
The country-by-country breakdown reinforces the idea that crypto adoption in Latin America is being shaped by local economic conditions. In Argentina, the overwhelming share of stablecoin purchases points to especially strong demand for dollar-linked exposure. In Brazil, the more even distribution between Bitcoin and stablecoins suggests a broader mix of investment and utility-driven activity. Colombia and Mexico, positioned between these two extremes, reflect a regional market that is far from uniform but increasingly aligned around practical use cases.
For Bitso, these patterns support the conclusion that the Latin American crypto market is entering a more functional phase. The emphasis is not just on asset appreciation, but on what crypto can do in environments where savings tools, payment rails, and cross-border financial access are often constrained.
Overall, the report paints a picture of a regional ecosystem where stablecoins are becoming essential transactional instruments, while Bitcoin remains the primary store-of-value asset. As adoption evolves, that combination may continue to define the next stage of crypto usage in Latin America.