Stablecoins are taking on a bigger role in Latin America’s crypto economy, but Bitcoin remains the region’s core long-term holding, according to Bitso’s latest Crypto Landscape in Latin America 2025 report. Based on data from nearly 10 million customers across major markets including Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico, the report found that roughly 40% of all crypto purchases in 2025 involved dollar-linked assets such as USDT and USDC.
The findings point to a notable shift in how crypto is being used across the region. Rather than relying on digital assets mainly for speculative trading, users appear to be increasingly adopting stablecoins as practical financial tools for savings, payments, and cross-border transfers. In markets where local currencies face volatility or access to reliable dollar-based instruments is limited, stablecoins are emerging as a functional alternative.
USDC Leads Purchases as Users Prioritize Stability
Among the assets purchased on Bitso’s platform, USDC represented 23% of all buys, outpacing Bitcoin at 18% and USDT at 16%. Bitso interpreted this as a sign that many users are prioritizing liquidity and financial stability over short-term trading strategies. The result is especially significant because it suggests demand is not being driven only by crypto-native investment behavior, but by broader everyday financial needs.
According to the report, the region is undergoing what Bitso described as a structural shift in crypto usage. In that model, stablecoins are no longer just another token category. Instead, they are becoming part of the financial infrastructure people use to preserve value, make payments, and move money across borders more efficiently.
This matters in Latin America, where inflation pressures, exchange controls, and uneven access to U.S. dollars have historically shaped consumer financial behavior. The report suggests that stablecoin adoption in the region is less about decentralization as an ideology and more about obtaining dependable access to a stable unit of account that traditional systems often fail to provide.
Argentina Stands Out, Brazil Looks More Balanced
The regional trend is visible across all the countries studied, although the intensity differs from market to market. Argentina showed the strongest preference for dollar-linked crypto, with USDC and USDT together accounting for more than 70% of all cryptocurrency purchases. That level of concentration underscores how strongly users in the country appear to favor instruments tied to the U.S. dollar.
Brazil, by contrast, was described as the most balanced market in the report. There, stablecoins represented 34% of purchases, while Bitcoin led with 22%. Colombia and Mexico fell somewhere in between, suggesting that while stablecoin demand is widespread across Latin America, local economic conditions still shape how users allocate capital among digital assets.
These differences are important because they show that Latin America is not a single crypto market with uniform behavior. Instead, users across the region may share a broad need for financial flexibility, but they express that need in different ways depending on inflation levels, currency dynamics, and the maturity of local crypto adoption.
Bitcoin Remains the Anchor Asset in Portfolios
Despite the growing role of stablecoins in purchase activity, Bitcoin still accounts for 52% of all portfolios in the region, making it the most widely held crypto asset in Latin America. That share declined by only 1% year over year, a relatively small move that indicates Bitcoin’s position remains highly resilient even as stablecoins gain transactional importance.
This split between what users buy and what they hold may be one of the report’s most revealing insights. Stablecoins appear to be increasingly used for utility: they help users preserve purchasing power in the short term, move money, and access a dollar-linked asset. Bitcoin, meanwhile, continues to function as a longer-term reserve asset for many holders in the region.
In other words, Latin American crypto users do not seem to be choosing between Bitcoin and stablecoins in a zero-sum way. Instead, the data suggests a complementary structure is forming: stablecoins for payments and day-to-day financial operations, Bitcoin for long-term value storage. That framework aligns with the realities of a region where economic uncertainty can make both liquidity and hard-asset exposure attractive for different reasons.
A Utility-Driven Crypto Market Is Taking Shape
Bitso’s report offers a broader signal about the direction of crypto adoption in Latin America. If stablecoins now represent around 40% of all purchases while Bitcoin still occupies more than half of aggregate holdings, the market may be maturing beyond simple speculation. Users appear to be assigning different roles to different assets based on concrete financial needs.
That distinction could become increasingly important for exchanges, payment providers, and fintech firms operating in the region. A market where stablecoins serve as transactional rails and Bitcoin remains the dominant store-of-value asset is structurally different from one driven mainly by momentum trading. It suggests user behavior is becoming more purpose-specific and potentially more durable.
The report also reinforces the idea that stablecoin growth in Latin America is tied to demand for reliability rather than purely technological enthusiasm. For many users, the attraction lies not in novelty, but in access to an asset linked to the dollar through a channel perceived as more accessible than traditional alternatives.
As a result, Latin America’s crypto market appears to be evolving into a two-track system: one track focused on practicality, with stablecoins supporting payments, savings, and transfers; the other centered on conviction, with Bitcoin continuing to serve as the benchmark reserve asset in user portfolios. Bitso’s data suggests both tracks are expanding at the same time, each fulfilling a different role in the region’s financial landscape.