Chainalysis Charts 49% Growth in North American Crypto Adoption

Cryptocurrency adoption is “truly global,” Chainalysis said in its yearly report on the sector.

The blockchain data platform’s 2025 Global Adoption Index, released Wednesday (Sept. 3), found this growth strongest in North America, at 49%, though numbers were up throughout much of the world, across all income brackets.

“That synchronicity suggests the current wave of crypto adoption is broad-based rather than isolated – benefiting mature markets with clearer rules and institutional rails, as well as emerging markets where remittances, dollar access via stablecoins, and mobile-first finance continue to accelerate adoption,” the report said.

“In other words, crypto adoption is truly global,” Chainalysis added.

According to the report, the growth in North America, with the region receiving more than $2.2 trillion in the past year, is a reflection of a time of renewed institutional interest, helped along by the launch of spot bitcoin ETFs and increased regulatory clarity.

The Asia-Pacific (APAC) region was the fastest growing part of the world when it came to on-chain crypto activity, the report found, with a 69% year-over-year increase in value received for the 12 months ending June of 2025.

Total crypto transaction volume in APAC rose from $1.4 trillion to $2.36 trillion, fueled by strong engagement in major markets such as India, Pakistan and Vietnam.

Meanwhile, stablecoin transaction volume continues to be dominated by USDT (Tether) and USDC. Between June 2024 and June of this year, USDT processed more than $1 trillion per month, peaking at $1.14 trillion in January 2025. USDC ranged from $1.24 trillion to $3.29 trillion monthly, with especially steep activity in October 2024.

“These volumes highlight the continued centrality of Tether and USDC in crypto market infrastructure, especially for cross-border payments and institutional activity,” the report said.

Speaking with PYMNTS CEO Karen Webster earlier this year, Chainalysis Co-founder and CEO Jonathan Levin said that the adoption of stablecoins is one of the most key shifts in blockchain usage, at least since his company began a little more than a decade ago.

This shift has been monumental, with hundreds of billions of dollars moving across blockchains while being held in traditional financial institutions like banks or United States treasuries.

“When we started the business in 2014, that wasn’t yet a concept,” Levin said. “Cryptocurrency only meant blockchains that had native cryptocurrency tokens. Today, people are putting all types of financial instruments on the blockchain, including the U.S. dollar.”