Crypto Adoption: A Closer Look at Latin America's Standings
Argentina and Ecuador's crypto adoption is driven by instability, but Brazil's #1 rank is a puzzle.
We were bummed that there was no data for Venezuela in Chainalysis' report on crypto adoption. Many hypothesize that countries with troubled currencies are more likely to seek cryptocurrencies as an alternate form of handling money. We see that to some extent, with Argentina's ranking 2nd in LatAm — the country has inflation rates that no one can quite keep up with.
Up next is Ecuador, which according to Chainalysis, has embraced crypto more than Germany or Japan. The reason for this may be the country's historically unstable situation.
From 1997 to 2005, no elected president managed to serve out a full term.
Relative instability turned into genuine instability when president Guillermo Lasso dissolved the country's congress last month to avoid impeachment. One can't blame an Ecuadorian for continuing to place at least some of their money into crypto or other perceived "safe havens" as they see their institutions collapse under the direction of one unpopular man.
Brazil occupying the #1 spot in LatAm (and #7 worldwide) is more of a head-scratcher. One potential explanation could be the country's increasing access to financial solutions — 85% of the eligible population, according to some estimates. This could indicate that the population is more financially mature and thus adopt crypto as an alternative investment.
Bolivia and Peru are higher up on the chart than El Salvador, a country that has promised so much potential and even made Bitcoin a legal tender in 2021. The country occupying an unimpressive rank on the list signals that Nayib Bukele's whole Bitcoin pump and narrative may not be working as he hoped. Research shows that El Salvador's Chivo launch (a wallet launched by the government to hold and exchange Bitcoin) was lackluster:
Despite free Bitcoin and discounted gasoline for those downloading and using the cryptocurrency app, downloads have stalled, and use in daily life is not widespread.
- National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)
This week’s opportunity:
Telefónica added 78 job postings on LinkedIn across LatAm in the past week
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