Cryptocurrency transactions in the Middle East and North Africa reach US$350 billion, with Saudi Ara

Saudi Arabia leads the growth of cryptocurrencies in the Middle East and North Africa, and Turkey's annual transaction volume exceeds US$200 billion.

Regulatory policies and stablecoins in the Gulf region are reshaping the pattern of regional cryptocurrency activities.

It is predicted that by 2025 to 2026, the cryptocurrency trading volume in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region will reach approximately US$350 billion. Compared with approximately US$100 billion in 2022, it has achieved significant growth. Among them, Saudi Arabia led the regional crypto market with a year-on-year growth rate of 154%, while Qatar followed closely with a growth rate of 120%.

Despite rapid growth in other markets, Turkey still ranks first in the region with its huge transaction size. As of mid-2025, the value of annual crypto activity handled by Turkey is close to US$200 billion. At the same time, United Arab Emirates cryptocurrency transactions exceeded $56 billion between 2024 and 2025, up 33% from the previous period.

Saudi Arabia: Fastest growing market and strict regulatory environment

Data shows that crypto expansion in the Middle East and North Africa is not concentrated in a single market or driven by an adoption model. Instead, investment, inflationary pressures, regulatory policies, and cross-border activities in the Gulf are working together to shape different market patterns.

According to Chainalysis data covering the period from July 2023 to June 2024, Saudi Arabia achieved an annual growth rate of 154%. This expansion has been accompanied by extensive investment in financial technology, blockchain infrastructure and digital payments. However, high trading activity has not translated into unlimited regulation of cryptocurrencies. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) pointed out in its 2026 advisory report that cryptocurrencies are still prohibited in Saudi Arabia.

Currently, the authorities are working to develop a digital asset strategy with financial stability, monetary sovereignty, consumer protection and market integrity at its core. At the infrastructure level, Saudi Arabia joined the mBridge project supported by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in 2024, which aims to test the use of approved central bank digital currencies in cross-border payments between commercial banks.

In contrast, Qatar has taken a more formal regulatory path. Its Qatar Financial Center (QFC) launched the Digital Asset Framework in 2024, covering areas such as tokenization, custody, exchanges, transfers and smart contracts.

Turkey: Largest inflation-driven trading market

In terms of transaction value, Turkey's market size is still huge. Chainalysis data shows that as of mid-2025, Turkey's annual transaction volume is close to US$200 billion, making it the largest crypto market in the Middle East and North Africa region. The continued depreciation of the lira and high inflation have driven residents 'demand for cryptocurrencies, as people seek alternative investment methods to preserve purchasing power.

United Arab Emirates: Institutional participation and the dominance of stablecoins

United Arab Emirates represents another model centered on institutional participation and regulated digital asset businesses. Chainalysis measures that its transaction volume exceeded US$56 billion between 2024 and 2025, an increase of 33%, with large institutional transfers accounting for the majority of the growth. Meanwhile, the Bitcoin Policy Institute uses different methods to estimate the market size of the United Arab Emirates at about $150 billion.

This difference highlights the main limitations when comparing regional totals. Chainalysis previously estimated that transaction volume across the Middle East and North Africa region from July 2023 to June 2024 was US$338.7 billion, and subsequently reported that the annual regional transaction volume as of June 2025 exceeded US$500 billion. Therefore, the estimate of US$350 billion needs to be interpreted in conjunction with its specific methodology.

In addition, the asset composition of each Gulf market also differs. According to the Bitcoin Policy Institute, Bitcoin accounts for approximately 38% of activity in the United Arab Emirates, and Ethereum accounts for 22%. USDT and USDC together account for 30%, demonstrating the important role of dollar-linked stablecoins in digital asset activities in the region.

Geopolitical influence on trading behavior

Broader geopolitical pressures also affect trading behavior. During the Israel-Iran conflict in June 2025, Bitcoin prices fell approximately 2.3% to US$105,200, and Ethereum fell 7.5%. Bitcoin then stabilized in the US$104,000 to US$106,000 range, and its market dominance rose to 64.8% over the same period.

Taken together, the data suggests that the crypto market in the Middle East and North Africa is expanding through a number of very different channels: Saudi Arabia leads in percentage growth, Turkey dominates transaction value, and the regulatory environment in the Gulf supports institutional engagement.