The US Dollar has been central to the global economy since the Second World War, and it has remained that way for more than eighty years- despite accusations of the US misusing the dollar to target its adversaries with sanctions, and the lack of access to capital for emerging markets.
That hegemony is under threat, especially for highly indebted countries like Bolivia and Argentina, whose local currencies have become worthless due to hyperinflation. For ordinary citizens, hyperinflation has meant a daily struggle with transactions, forcing them to keep their savings in US dollars at home even as prices of daily essentials keep rising in double digits every day.
For them, cryptocurrencies have become a godsend for their daily lives, where they can use the virtual currency to sidestep the challenges with their domestic currencies.
In Bolivia, where the domestic currency is almost worthless, small businesses are increasingly using USDT (Tether) and other stablecoins as a viable alternative to dollar bills, which see bouts of shortages. Even leading automakers now accept payments in cryptocurrencies, with Toyota announcing a partnership with crypto exchange BitGo to accept payments in Tether.
History was made tonight: the first Toyota was purchased in Bolivia with $USDT. 🛻@ToyosaBolivia, and @Tether_to has partnered with BitGo to make stablecoin payments possible, delivering safe custody, stable transactions, and seamless experiences.
Stablecoins are powering a… pic.twitter.com/eFpfCMZTDg
— BitGo (@BitGo) September 20, 2025
Further south in Argentina, locals are increasingly fed up with the government’s handling of its debt, where successive governments have pushed the economy deeper into debt for decades. There, startups like Lemon have started offering debit cards for crypto transactions, even as Argentina’s central bank hasn’t regulated cryptocurrency so far.
For ordinary folks in these countries, cryptocurrencies offer a viable alternative to the traditional monetary system, one that heavily depends on the interconnectedness of various local and global institutions. On the other hand, cryptocurrencies offer users to conduct transactions outside of the banking system. Crypto exchanges like BitGo and Binance double up as their local banks, where any transactions are possible without worrying about their money losing their value, as the intrinsic value is guaranteed.
Even as the brute dominance of the dollar dwindles, alternatives like cryptocurrencies offer locals a reason to carry out their lives without worrying much about their government’s local issues.
Of course, the cryptocurrencies will not solve Bolivia’s or Argentina’s economic woes, but it does offer a guaranteed value for local transactions, something that’s crucial for the day-to-day functioning of local economies.
