Overview
- A Bitcoin Policy Institute report published Sept. 4, 2026 estimates annual on‑chain transaction value in the Middle East and North Africa rose from about $100 billion in 2022 to roughly $350 billion by 2025–2026.
- Turkey remains the largest market by transaction value at nearly $200 billion a year, while Saudi Arabia recorded the fastest growth with a 154% year‑over‑year increase reported in Chainalysis data for July 2023–June 2024.
- Dollar‑pegged stablecoins account for about 45–52% of regional on‑chain activity, and investors in countries such as Egypt, Lebanon and Iran are using stablecoins and Bitcoin to protect savings and move money across borders.
- Gulf financial centers including the UAE, Bahrain and Qatar are building licensing rules and infrastructure that are drawing institutional flows, with the UAE estimated at roughly $150 billion of on‑chain activity in 2025 under the report's methodology.
- Analysts warn that on‑chain volume measures transfers not unique users or net capital inflows, and that different datasets and windows produce materially different totals; rapid event‑driven moves, such as about $10.3 million tracked leaving Iranian exchanges between Feb. 28 and March 2, show how fast funds can shift during conflict.