TLDR
- Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino says USDT use is growing in Venezuela, Argentina, Bolivia and Turkey due to currency instability
- Users hold USDT as a digital dollar alternative when local currencies weaken or physical dollars are scarce
- Chainalysis ranked Venezuela 18th, Turkey 14th and Argentina 20th in its 2025 Global Crypto Adoption Index
- Latin America saw nearly $1.5 trillion in crypto activity between July 2022 and June 2025
- Tether reported its products served more than 570 million users worldwide as of March 2026
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said on August 23 that USDT adoption is growing in Venezuela, Argentina, Bolivia and Turkey. He said people in these countries are turning to the stablecoin because their local currencies are losing value and physical dollars are hard to access.
“The economies of several developing countries rely heavily on USDT, both for domestic and foreign trade,” Ardoino wrote in a post.
Several developing Countries's economies are heavily relying on USDT, for both internal and foreign commerce.
Today, Tether's mission of financial inclusion, is more important than ever.
— Paolo Ardoino 🤖 (@paoloardoino) August 23, 2026
USDT is designed to track the U.S. dollar. It lets users hold digital dollars without a U.S. bank account and can be moved between wallets and exchanges at any time.
Turkey has been dealing with high inflation for years. Consumer inflation dropped from 49.4% in September 2024 to 30.9% by December 2025. The IMF projects inflation of around 23% by end of 2026. In that environment, many Turkish users hold USDT to protect savings.
Argentina has faced similar pressures. Monthly inflation hit 3.4% in March 2026 following currency depreciation. Peer-to-peer USDT trading has become a common way for Argentines to hold dollar-denominated value.
Commercial Use Cases in Venezuela and Bolivia
In Venezuela, local businesses use USDT for retail payments and import and export settlements. The stablecoin operates alongside bolivars, physical dollars and other digital assets in what observers describe as a hybrid currency economy.
Chainalysis estimated Venezuela received $44.6 billion in cryptocurrency value between July 2022 and June 2025. The country ranked 18th globally for crypto adoption and ninth when adjusted for population size.
Bolivia shows an even clearer official signal. The Central Bank of Bolivia publishes a reference USDT exchange rate based on peer-to-peer activity on Binance. Local banks already offer some USDT services, and businesses use crypto for international payments and fuel transactions.
Bolivia’s central bank identified foreign currency restrictions, higher inflation and low international reserves as continuing risks in its January financial stability report.
Chainalysis tracked nearly $1.5 trillion in Latin American crypto activity from July 2022 through June 2025. Argentina accounted for $93.9 billion of that, Venezuela $44.6 billion and Bolivia $14.8 billion.
Dollar stablecoins made up 40% of purchases by Bitso users in 2025, compared to 18% for Bitcoin. Bitso operates across several Latin American markets.
Tether said its products served more than 570 million people as of March 2026. The company’s USDT supply hit a record $188 billion in 2026, making it the largest dollar stablecoin by supply.
Users still face risks. USDT is backed by Tether’s reserves, not government guarantees, and availability can change if regulations shift.
