Ukraine is now second in the world for crypto usage. Which other countries have embraced it?

Long gone are the days when cryptocurrency was just a niche, distant revolutionary ideal for the people who dreamed of achieving social change through technology and those who could sniff out a good investment.

The crypto hype has come true, with Bitcoin – the world’s most famous cryptocurrency exchange – now boasting over 180 million users globally and over 18,000 businesses worldwide currently accepting cryptocurrency payments.

But cryptocurrency has not taken off in the same way in all countries, with adoption and use sporadic around the world.

Which countries are crypto hubs?

A new study by Merchant Machine, a payment processing comparison website, has found that the US, Ukraine, and the UK are the top 3 countries for crypto usage worldwide, based on the number of crypto owners, businesses that accept crypto, and the amount. of Bitcoin ATMs available.

The US has the second highest number of crypto owners in the world, over 27 million compared to India’s over 100 million, but the country has the highest percentage of crypto owners compared to the total population.

The number of Bitcoin ATMs across the US also eclipses that of other nations, with over 33,000 machines compared to Canada’s 2,458. For further comparison, India has only 2 Bitcoin ATMs.

The US also has one of the most powerful economies in the world, which may explain how crypto has taken off there. But the same explanation does not justify why crypto has become so relevant in Ukraine.

This is the full list of the top 10 countries that use crypto the most:

10. Colombia

9. Vietnam

8. The Netherlands

7. France

6. Russia

5. Thailand

4. India

3. Great Britain

2. Ukraine

1. The United States

How has crypto become so relevant in Ukraine?

Unfortunately, the reason why Ukraine is the second country behind the US in terms of crypto usage is due to the war that has been going on in the Eastern European nation since February 24 when Russian troops invaded.

The country had begun to embrace cryptocurrency before the start of the war and was already ranked fourth for cryptocurrency adoption among citizens in 2021 in a global index compiled by Chainalysis, a crypto research group.

However, as soon as the war against Russia broke out, the Ukrainian government made the strategic decision to expand the use of crypto to support the economy.

On the second day of the war, Ukraine’s Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov reportedly asked his deputy to set up official state wallets that could accept cryptocurrency payments.

Thanks to this bold move, Kyiv has already collected more than €120 million in crypto since the beginning of the Russian invasion that has helped support its troops and buy military supplies.

Where can you do business with crypto?

There is a big difference between owning crypto and being able to get around with crypto, pay for goods and services with digital currency.

In fact, Merchant Machine’s ranking of countries with the highest number of businesses accepting crypto payments in 2022 looks quite different from those ranking crypto adoption. The noticeable difference is the number of European cities on the list.

These are the 10 cities with the highest number of businesses that accept payments in crypto:

10. Amsterdam, Netherlands (27)

9. Vienna, Austria (34)

8. Madrid, Spain (35)

7. Berlin, Germany (39)

6. Bangkok, Thailand (39)

5. Athens, Greece (43)

4. Paris, France (46)

3. Seoul, South Korea (47)

2. Caracas, Venezuela (58)

1. Bogota, Colombia (86)

The reason why Bogota has so many businesses embracing crypto may be linked to the fact that the city’s authorities announced a program in 2021 to fund blockchain companies to make the Colombian metropolis a smarter city.

A budget of 2.8 billion pesos (€660,000) was devoted to funding start-ups and developing useful initiatives.

In Venezuela, on the other hand, crypto has filled the gaps in a failing economy, as hyperinflation and US sanctions have combined to weaken the Venezuelan currency to the point of rendering it almost worthless.

Elsewhere, Merchant Machine found that Vietnam was the only country with no businesses currently accepting crypto.