While the lira collapsed against the U.S. dollar in the last quarter of 2021, cryptocurrency transactions using the lira averaged $1.8 billion per day on three exchanges, according to blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis. Those volumes are still modest compared to the results of a 2019 BIS survey that found around $71 billion in lira transactions per day, but even that is still more than in any of the previous five quarters. many.
In the third quarter of 2021, the lira became the most traded government-issued currency against Tether, surpassing the US dollar and the euro. Turks have embraced cryptocurrencies despite an official ban last year from their use as a payment method in the country.
That has prompted some to exchange dollars and cash dollars held by banks for so-called stablecoins, cryptocurrencies whose value is pegged to traditional currencies such as the U.S. dollar, according to several Turkish depositors. More than half of lira transactions in December involved Tether, Chainalysis said.