The Middle East and North Africa region has become the seventh largest cryptocurrency market with growing adoption by both retail and institutions.
According to a Chainalysis report, the Middle East and North Africa region received $338.7 billion in cryptocurrencies between July 2023 and June 2024, ranking seventh. This represents 7.5% of the global value on the chain.
Turkey leads the region with $137 billion in on-chain value, followed by Morocco with $12.7 billion. These two countries are the only two in Chainalysis’s Global Crypto Adoption Index.
The report stated that 93% of transactions in the region exceeded $10,000 in value, driven by professional and institutional movements.
According to Chainalysis, the UAE has seen impressive growth in retail and enterprise value on the chain due to its favorable regulatory landscape.
Last month, Tether, the issuer of the largest stablecoin USDT, announced the creation of a stablecoin pegged to the UAE dirham that will be backed by the country’s liquid reserves.
The stablecoin issuer has partnered with Fuze, a crypto infrastructure company, to educate and raise awareness about cryptocurrencies among individuals and large institutions in Türkiye and the Middle East.
According to data from Chainalysis, the Saudi cryptocurrency market saw a 154% year-over-year growth in the timeframe, making it the fastest-growing digital asset economy in the region.
Most of the chain activity in the MENA region occurred on decentralized exchanges. According to the report, 32.4% and 30.9% of the chain’s movements in the UAE and Saudi Arabia occurred on decentralized exchanges.
It is important to note that Saudi Arabia and Qatar still do not have an operational regulatory framework for crypto companies, which may be the main reason behind their use of their decentralized exchanges.
Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Investment invested $250 million in the Hedera blockchain in February to boost web3 development in the country.