The Philippines ranks 8th in the “2024 Global Crypto Adoption Index Top 20” by Chainalysis, a company specializing in cryptocurrency investigation and compliance solutions. The research found that 7 out of the top 20 countries in the index are from the Central & Southern Asia and Oceania (CSAO) region.
Chainalysis noted that CSAO has “a unique set of crypto markets with high activity levels on local exchanges, merchant services, and DeFi (Decentralized Finance).”
The countries that ranked in the index include India, Nigeria, Indonesia, United States, Vietnam, Ukraine, Russia, Philippines, Pakistan, Brazil, Turkiye, United Kingdom, Venezuela, Mexico, Argentina, Thailand, Cambodia, Canada, South Korea, and China (in that order).
Indonesia leads the region in cryptocurrency value received during the study period, totaling around $157.1 billion. In countries like Singapore, crypto adoption is driven by regulatory progress and merchant services. Indonesia, however, shows a more dynamic market, highlighting diverse use cases beyond the usual ones. It also recorded the highest year-over-year growth in the region, nearly reaching 200%.
Global growth
Chainalysis data indicate that global crypto activity’s total value increased between the fourth quarter of 2023 and the first quarter of 2024, surpassing figures from the 2021 market surge.
The index compiled scores from 151 countries for each quarter from Q3 2021 to Q2 2024, showing the changes in global adoption. The Global Crypto Adoption Index highlights the spread of unique cryptocurrency use cases and the factors driving adoption worldwide.
“Last year, growth in crypto adoption was driven primarily by lower-middle-income countries,” Chainalysis reported. “This year, however, crypto activity increased across all income brackets, with a slowdown in high-income countries since early 2024.”
The index also emphasized that centralized exchanges, especially transfers over $10,000, significantly contributed to the rise of crypto adoption in the region.