Pakistan, India among top 3 global leaders in crypto adoption: report

Pakistan and India have secured their place among the top three countries in the world for cryptocurrency adoption, according to the sixth annual Chainalysis Global Crypto Adoption Index.

The Global Crypto Adoption Index is a tool that measures how much people actually use cryptocurrency in their daily lives and financial systems, focusing on real adoption rather than just trading or speculation. It ranks 151 countries on a scale of 0 to 1, with higher scores meaning higher adoption. Researchers combine four sub-indices, adjusting for population size and purchasing power.

One measure looks at the on-chain cryptocurrency value received by centralized services, weighted by GDP per capita on a PPP-adjusted basis. To estimate activity, researchers track transaction volumes from different crypto services and analyze web traffic patterns.

While VPNs can affect physical location data, the vast dataset—covering millions of transactions—minimizes this issue. The index also highlights retail-sized transactions under $10,000, showing how everyday citizens are using crypto, not just large investors.

According to the report, India, Pakistan and Vietnam emerged as the top three countries in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, with widespread digital asset activity across both centralized and decentralized platforms. Globally, the U.S. climbed to second place, while Pakistan, Vietnam and Brazil rounded out the top five.

The APAC region continues to dominate crypto adoption, recording a 69% year-over-year increase in value received. Total transaction volume surged from $1.4 trillion to $2.36 trillion, with much of this growth driven by India, Pakistan and Vietnam.

To manage this fast-evolving sector, Pakistan has created a National Crypto Council to oversee its nascent virtual assets industry.