In Mexico, stablecoins surpassed bitcoin (BTC) for the first time as the most purchased cryptocurrency asset during 2025, in a context in which the use of the digital ecosystem has shifted towards more operational functions linked to the dollar.
According to the report data Crypto Landscape in Latin America 2025stablecoins They represented 36% of purchases in Mexico during 2025while bitcoin was left behind in acquisition preference, although it maintains its leadership in holdings with around 52% of portfolios.
Likewise, at the regional level, assets linked to the dollar reached 40% of purchasescompared to 18% for bitcoin, confirming a transition towards more functional uses.
The change accelerated after the financial restrictions of 2025when the United States Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) pointed out three Mexican institutions as high-risk entities in terms of money laundering, which impacted dollar flows and reinforced the demand for digital alternatives.
In this context, assets such as USDC and USDT were consolidated as instruments for payments, savings and international transfers, rather than as speculative assets. He Mexican ecosystem maintains a dual behavior: stablecoins gain weight in daily use, while bitcoin continues to function as the main store of value within portfolios.
It is worth noting that the trend is developing amid new regulatory discussions, as reported by CriptoNoticias. In May 2026, the Mexican Senate presented an initiative to regulate stablecoins referenced to the peso under the figure of Stable Virtual Assets (AVE), which requires 100% support in liquid reserves and seeks to integrate them into the formal financial system.
Despite possible regulation, the Mexican market shows a deeper transition: digital assets cease to be solely an investment category and begin to operate as parallel financial infrastructure. If this trend continues, Mexico could move towards a “functional digital dollarization” model, where stablecoins act as an operational bridge with the global financial system, while bitcoin retains its role as a non-sovereign store of value.