After a 2022 full of economic and financial ups and downs, 2023 presents a boom that invites us to think that the “winter” of cryptocurrencies is behind us.
In Argentina, more and more people choose new investment methods to protect their money against inflation and the devaluation of the local currency. Given this scenario, the price of Bitcoin -which grew by 50% between January and March 2023- and the increase in the value of other crypto assets such as ethereum (up 42%) and Solana -which went up 100%- once again turned cryptocurrencies into a place of financial refuge.
According to the 2022 Global Cryptocurrency Adoption Index conducted by Chainalysis, at least 1 in 10 Argentine adults buy or bought cryptocurrencies ever. And it is estimated that more than 2.5 million people operate crypto assets in the country.
But the rage for these assets is also demonstrated by CoinsPaid, one of the main cryptocurrency payment platforms, which had a significant increase in its number of transactions in the first quarter of the year.
Total volume for the first quarter was approximately 3,690 million euros (just over 4 billion dollars), a 37.73% increase compared to the same period of the previous year, and an increase of 14.32% compared to the fourth quarter of 2022.
“CoinsPaid has been following consistent growth since last year and that is also confirmed this quarter. With a possible global recession and the failure of some traditional banks, more and more people are embracing cryptocurrencies as a safe asset and driven by the boom of Bitcoin and other currencies in recent months,” said Ilya Shmakov, COO of CoinsPaid.
This quarter’s results may be related to the recent rise in cryptocurrencies in April 2023 and the idea of a definitive end to the “crypto winter” seems more consolidated.
In addition, the company registered the milestone of 23,000 million euros of cryptocurrencies processed on its platform on April 1, and if Bitcoin manages to overcome the barrier of $30,000 and consolidateCoinsPaid hopes to see another big bull run soon not only for the company itself but for other cryptocurrency ecosystems around the world.
The popularity of virtual wallets and cryptocurrencies as a payment method
According to the report Prime Time for Real-Time published by ACI Worldwide in 2022They registered 195 billion digital payment transactions in real time (PTR) worldwide (63.2% growth in this payment method compared to 2021). These numbers are due in part to the popularity of virtual wallets, positioning cryptocurrencies as a major payment method player in the near future.
With the recent crises of large traditional banks and the leverage of cryptocurrencies, not only users but also investors in crypto assets may see that fiat currencies such as the dollar are no longer the currency of choice for financial reserves. And with that, cryptocurrencies, which are already witnessing more regulations, can gain a relevant space.
According to data published by CoinsPaid, the total number of transactions made through its platform in the first quarter exceeded 6,000 million euroswhich represents an increase of 41.25% compared to the first quarter of 2022 and an increase of 9.36% compared to the previous quarter.
According to Ilya Shmakov, the adoption of cryptocurrencies continues to grow mainly due to its increased acceptance as a payment method as well. “One of the advantages of cryptocurrencies is that they allow instant payments anywhere in the world at costs much lower than international remittance commissions, which becomes a viable solution for many companies that need to negotiate with suppliers from other countries. “, he concluded.
Source: Ambito
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