Pakistan Ranks Among Top Global Drivers
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has emerged as one of the leading drivers of global cryptocurrency adoption. The country now stands alongside India and Vietnam in powering Asia-Pacific’s transformation into the global hub of grassroots digital asset activity, according to the Global Crypto Adoption Index 2025.
How the Index Measures Adoption
The index evaluates adoption through four sub-indices measuring cryptocurrency services. It ranks 151 nations using population size, purchasing power, and transaction patterns. Each country receives a normalized score between 0 and 1, with higher scores signaling stronger adoption.
Data Behind the Rankings
Researchers analyzed web traffic from hundreds of millions of transactions and over 13 billion visits to crypto platforms. Local expert insights cross-verified the findings. VPN use creates some distortion, but the dataset’s size limits significant errors.
Asia-Pacific Leads Global Growth
In the 12 months ending June 2025, Asia-Pacific recorded a 69% rise in on-chain activity. Transaction volume increased from $1.4 trillion to $2.36 trillion. Pakistan, India, and Vietnam led this growth across both centralized and decentralized services.
Global South Shows Strength
Latin America followed with 63% growth. Sub-Saharan Africa grew 52%, North America 49%, Europe 42%, and MENA 33%. Crypto’s role in remittances and payments drove much of this expansion in the Global South.
Institutional Adoption Gains Momentum
North America and Europe still dominate in absolute terms. They received $2.2 trillion and $2.6 trillion, respectively. Institutional demand, regulatory clarity, and bitcoin ETFs boosted North America. Europe’s growth reflected sustained institutional involvement.
Stablecoins and Bitcoin Lead Activity
Stablecoins reshaped the market. USDT and USDC dominated with trillions in monthly flows, but EURC and PYUSD surged. Institutional giants like Visa, Mastercard, and Stripe enabled stablecoin payments. Major banks explored new offerings. Bitcoin remained the top fiat entry point, attracting $4.6 trillion in inflows.
Global South Momentum Continues
The index shows adoption rising across all income groups. However, low-income countries remain volatile due to conflict and weak infrastructure. Afghanistan’s collapse in crypto activity after 2021 highlighted these fragile trends.
Pakistan’s Role in the Future
The 2025 index underscores accelerated worldwide growth. Pakistan stands out as a central force in APAC’s rise and the global shift toward the South.
