After Bolivia lifted its ban on bitcoin in June, cryptocurrency transactions have increased dramatically. Between July and September, trading volume averaged $15.6 million per month, up significantly from $7.6 million in the first half of the year. This brings the total transaction value for the third quarter to $46.8 million, surpassing the first six months. The increase was mainly due to the introduction of a regulation on June 25 that allows the use of electronic payment methods to buy and sell virtual assets. The largest volume of transactions was concentrated in stablecoins.
The number of transactions also increased by 141%, increasing from 932,000 to 1,123,000 over the same period, demonstrating the growing adoption of virtual assets among both financial institutions and private users. The Central Bank of Bolivia has been working closely with the Financial Supervision Authority and the Financial Investigation Unit to implement the new regulations in line with the recommendations of the Latin American Financial Action Task Force.
Since the new regulation was passed, six financial intermediaries have started to conduct virtual asset transactions through electronic payment methods. The central bank has also included digital assets in its educational program, holding 33 seminars across the country, where more than 3,000 people learned about virtual assets and their risks.