Rising inflation and a strengthening dollar have driven Latin American countries to become market leaders for crypto giant Binance.
Now that we are seeing inflation ramping up worldwide, we are seeing that more and more people are seeking cryptocurrency, like bitcoin, as a way to protect themselves from inflation, said Maximiliano Hinz, Binance’s head in Latin America.
According to Hinz, Latin American countries have become the top markets for Binance, such as Brazil, Mexico and Argentina, where annual inflation is 90 percent.
Overall, Latin America and the Caribbean posted an inflation rate of nearly 9.8 percent in 2021, according to data compiled by Statista.
While a number of Latin American nations have yet to pass meaningful crypto legislation, unlike El Salvador which made headlines for adopting bitcoin as legal tender, Hinz does not necessarily view this as an issue.
Regulation is a framework, but it’s not always negative that something isn’t regulated, he said. If something isn’t banned, then it’s legal.