Brazil’s Stablecoin Surge Puts It Among The World’s Key Markets
Key Points
- Stablecoin transaction volume topped $4 trillion by August 2025, TRM Labs estimates.
- TRM ranks Brazil in the global top five for adoption, as retail use accelerates.
- New Central Bank rules start February 2, 2026, tightening oversight as the market grows.
Stablecoins are designed to stay close to a fixed price, usually $1. TRM Labs argues that this “boring” feature is exactly why they have moved from the edges of crypto into the core of global finance.
The firm estimates stablecoin transaction volume surpassed $4 trillion year to date by August 2025, up 83% from the same period in 2024. Between January and July 2025, stablecoins represented about 30% of all on-chain activity.
Brazil has become one of the clearest examples of how that shift works in practice. TRM lists the country among the world’s five biggest adoption markets, alongside India, the United States, Pakistan, and the Philippines.
The report ties the trend to everyday use, not trading cycles: remittances, cross-border payments, and straightforward access to dollars. Tax data points in the same direction.
Brazil’s Receita Federal has reported that stablecoins, led by USDT, overtook bitcoin in declared trading volumes in the period it analyzed. USDT reached more than R$271 billion in cumulative volume, versus more than R$151 billion for bitcoin.
Based on partial 2023 figures, Receita said roughly 80% of reported crypto movement involved USDT, and cited USDT and USDC as the most traded stablecoins.
Stablecoins face tighter Brazil rules
Global concentration remains high. TRM estimates more than 90% of fiat-backed stablecoins are dollar-pegged, and that USDT and USDC together represent about 93% of total stablecoin market capitalization.
That dominance helps explain why stablecoin rails have become the default settlement layer for many cross-border flows. The report also challenges a persistent stereotype.
TRM estimates 99% of stablecoin activity is licit, even though stablecoins accounted for about 60% of illicit crypto transaction volume in the first quarter of 2025.
It recorded a $5.2 billion decline in sanctions-related volume within stablecoins, while sanctions-related volume rose by more than $1 billion in non-stablecoin assets, suggesting bad actors are adapting.
Regulation is now catching up. Brazil’s Central Bank framework under Resolutions 519, 520, and 521 takes effect on February 2, 2026, requiring authorization, governance standards, cyber controls, anti-money-laundering measures, and segregation of client assets.
Existing firms have up to 270 days to seek authorization, and operating with non-authorized entities becomes prohibited after October 30, 2026.
Europe’s MiCA and a new U.S. Senate market-structure draft underscore the same reality: stablecoins are no longer a niche product, and Brazil is no longer a peripheral market.
Related coverage: Brazil’s Morning Call | Foreign Trading Drove Brazil’s Stock Volume in 2025 as Local This is part of The Rio Times’ daily coverage of Latin American news and financial markets.
Live Market IntelligenceBrazil — Live Market Board
Rio Times · Live Market Intelligence
Brazil — Live Market Board
-0.36%
176,010.90
-0.36%
66,399.71
-0.17%
10,947.38
-0.70%
3,291,246
+1.92%
2,292.03
-0.29%
57,174.37
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| Instrument | Last | Change | YoY | Prev. | High | Low | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IBOV | 176,010.90 | -0.36% | +30.14% | 176,641.10 | — | — | — |
| USD/BRL | 5.08 | +0.06% | -8.57% | 5.07 | 5.08 | 5.08 | — |
| SELIC | 14.25% | — | — | — | — | — | |
| PETR4 | 40.59 | -0.17% | +27.04% | 40.66 | 40.59 | — | — |
| VALE3 | 74.51 | +0.68% | +38.21% | 74.01 | 74.51 | — | — |
| ITUB4 | 43.14 | -1.12% | +26.88% | 43.63 | 43.14 | — | — |
| BBDC4 | 18.60 | -0.16% | +15.53% | 18.63 | 18.60 | — | — |
| BBAS3 | 20.55 | -0.19% | -1.67% | 20.59 | 20.55 | — | — |
| B3SA3 | 15.69 | +2.35% | +14.28% | 15.33 | 15.85 | 15.42 | 36,695,600 |
| ABEV3 | 15.57 | -1.52% | +17.33% | 15.81 | 15.57 | — | — |
| WEGE3 | 44.26 | +0.14% | +11.57% | 44.20 | 44.26 | — | — |
| PRIO3 | 57.50 | -0.12% | +36.51% | 57.57 | 57.50 | — | — |
| SUZB3 | 41.48 | +0.90% | -17.86% | 41.11 | 41.48 | — | — |
| RENT3 | 40.35 | -0.47% | +9.32% | 40.54 | 40.35 | — | — |
| AZZA3 | 18.66 | -1.01% | -48.45% | 18.85 | 18.66 | — | — |
| CSNA3 | 5.24 | +0.77% | -35.15% | 5.20 | 5.24 | — | — |
| GGBR4 | 24.20 | +3.77% | +46.93% | 23.32 | 24.42 | 23.09 | 15,374,800 |
| ENEV3 | 26.95 | -0.81% | +100.07% | 27.17 | 26.95 | — | — |
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