Bitcoin trading volume skyrockets in Latin America! The over-the-counter bitcoin trading portal LocalBitcoins.com found that Argentina, Chile, Mexico, Columbia, Peru, and Venezuela are posting more offline trading activity than the reported global average.
These figures, when measured against local fiat currencies in those countries, appears higher than even during 2018’s crypto winter bear market.
Interesting that the crypto market is following a totally different pattern in LatAm (source data from LocalBitcoins) – there was no winter. pic.twitter.com/4hPiAFpY18
— Brian Armstrong (@brian_armstrong) May 29, 2019
Bitcoin trading volume seeing an uptick might be seen as natural given Bitcoin’s exceptional rebound during the second quarter of this year. Thus far, we’ve seen Bitcoin flirting in the 3,000’s to settle just under 9,000 per Bitcoin.
The cryptocurrency has surged 120% since April 1 – bottom-recovery for Bitcoin is at 135%. Combine this with the fact that Bitcoin is growing stronger against the fiat currencies of the countries listed above, and we begin to see a trend of strong Bitcoin prices.
For example, look no further than Argentina’s Pesos. The Argentinian Peso sunk to its all-time low against Bitcoin at 388,670 pesos on May 26th, 2019. The Mexican Peso similarly sunk to a 10-month low against Bitcoin 2 days later on May 28th. This is a similar sight across more Latin American fiat markets – this is indicating that people are choosing Bitcoin over their local fiat currency.
Bitcoin hits all-time high in Argentine pesos https://t.co/k9BAow4wdP via @financialtimes
— Barry Silbert (@barrysilbert) May 27, 2019
We can speculate as to why this is the case, but the clearest reason could be the distrust of South American economies. As more and more people become aware of the dire state of health of these economies and grappling the effects of inflation that has spanned decades, people are gravitating towards cryptocurrency.
Agustina Fainguersch, a managing partner at Wolox, an Argentina-based software firm, called Bitcoin a practical solution amidst troubling economic concerns and traditional financial systems.
“In Argentina, we exchange pesos into dollars and then back again within a week… many Argentines are often just trying to make sure they have enough money to cover basic expenses… So Long as Bitcoin is less volatile than the Peso, it’s attractive. Argentine’s have a long history of navigating volatility.”
Venezuela was the first economy to be devastated by hyperinflation. The Bolivar fell to the point where a McDonald burger cost around $350. The most notable cryptocurrency that Venezuelans have flocked to and adopted is Dash.
What do you think? We’ve seen this before with Venezuela, do you think South America could be the first real case of adoption by a continent? Let us know on our Facebook page!
