Ukraine has risen to seventh place among 117 countries in Chainalysis’ 2026 global ranking of grassroots cryptocurrency adoption, moving up one position from last year.
Only Brazil, the United States, Nigeria, Japan, South Korea and India ranked ahead of Ukraine in the latest Global Crypto Adoption Index.
This year, Chainalysis introduced a new methodology that assesses countries across four areas: flows through crypto services, domestic peer-to-peer activity, cross-border transactions and cryptocurrency balances held on-chain.
The report found that crypto use remained surprisingly resilient despite one of the market’s sharpest downturns since 2022. The total cryptocurrency market lost around 50% of its value, equivalent to about $2.1 trillion, but global crypto economic activity declined by only 1.6%, from $9.5 trillion to $9.4 trillion.
Chainalysis attributes this resilience partly to the growing use of cryptocurrency beyond investment and speculation, particularly stablecoins for payments, remittances and moving savings across borders.
Cross-border stablecoin transfers increased 77.5% during the period covered by the report, rising from $124.2 billion to $220.3 billion. Monthly volumes more than doubled from $11 billion in January 2025 to $24 billion in June 2026.
Retail activity also expanded despite falling crypto prices. Transfers below $100 increased by 78.4%, while transactions between $100 and $1,000 rose 58.6%.
Brazil took first place in the global ranking, with a crypto economy estimated at $252.5 billion. It was followed by the United States, Nigeria, Japan, South Korea, India and Ukraine.
The findings suggest that cryptocurrency use is increasingly being driven by practical financial activity rather than market prices alone, with stablecoins becoming particularly important for cross-border payments and economies facing currency volatility.
