In Bolivia's severe economic crisis marked by dollar shortages and fuel scarcity, businesses are turning to cryptocurrencies and stablecoins for survival. A local app called Meru, built on the Stellar blockchain, enables payments with USDC via QR codes and provides stablecoin-linked cards for global spending. This infrastructure offers a lifeline to importers and entrepreneurs bypassing official exchange restrictions.
Bolivia faces its worst economic crisis in 40 years, with depleted foreign reserves, diesel shortages, and a booming informal dollar market at double the official rate. Crypto adoption has exploded post-legalization in June 2024, with transaction volumes surging over 500% year-over-year. Businesses like agricultural supplier Cooperagro use Binance P2P for stablecoins to pay international suppliers. Meru, a Stellar-based crypto wallet, has seen unexpected growth in Bolivia, allowing Uber payments, virtual cards for e-commerce on Amazon and Alibaba, and bank transfers in USDC or USDT. Co-founder Carlos Nira notes Bolivia's demand spiked due to its fit for dollar access needs. Importers praise Meru's cost-effective solutions amid restricted bank dollars and card limits. While stablecoins aid a minority, they bridge critical gaps in dollar liquidity, even appearing in duty-free pricing.