Global inflation continues and Fiat currency weakens. Cryptocurrency has emerged as an “inflation hedge” for millions of investors seeking to protect their wealth.
MEXC’s report shows that economic stress, cultural factors and market cycles influence crypto adoption. It also highlights important contrasts between regions.
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There is no all size approach for global adoption
As inflationary pressures and currency debilitating continue, cryptos are increasingly considered shelter. The latest report shared by MEXC shows that the share of global users citing Crypto as Inflation Hedge has skyrocketed from 29% to 46% in the second quarter. It also reveals clear regional differences.
East Asia recorded its most significant rise, jumping from 23% to 52%, while the Middle East almost doubled from 27% to 45%. This illustrates the role of macroeconomic instability in accelerating digital asset adoption.
In Latin America, Memocoin adoption has risen from 27% to 34%, with the highest global growth rate, with 63% of new users citing it as their main motivation as “earning passive income.”
Meanwhile, South Asia has experienced a sharp increase in spot trading volume, which has increased from 45% to 52%, with 53% of users naming financial independence as the highest target. The region also leads in futures trading (46%), while Europe shows milder adoption, staying close to the global average.
“We’re looking forward to seeing you in the future,” said Tracy Jin, MEXC’s COO.
Beincrypto reported growing adoption of cryptocurrency in the United States, with increased education and ownership, especially among people over the age of 40. The adoption of cryptocurrency in the US outperforms global trends, with over 37% of US cryptocurrency owners belonging to the Generation X or Baby Boomers.
Market Behavior
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MEXC’s report also reveals insights into global investors’ behaviour in crypto holdings and portfolio composition. Public chain tokens are the backbone of the Crypto portfolio, with over 65% of users holding them. Latin America and Southeast Asia have the highest shares at 74% and 70% respectively.
Stablecoin Holdings remained stable at around 50% worldwide. Futures trading behavior indicates greater regional differences. South Asia (46%) and Southeast Asia (38%) surpassed the global average (29%), while Latin America fell to 19%, suggesting a leaning towards a low-risk strategy.
The distribution of wealth is also changing. In East Asia, high-value wallets (over $20,000) fell from 39% to 33%, reflecting profit acquisition and regulatory pressures, while mid-tier wallets ($5,000-$20,000) have expanded, indicating wider and evenly distributed participation.
Q3 2025 Outlook
Based on these findings, MEXC highlights several important trends shaped by economic and cultural factors.
First, the use of crypto as an inflation hedge is expected to continue to rise. Protecting wealth from devaluation is becoming a major factor in adoption due to global macro uncertainty, weakening of fiat, and persistent inflation. If this pressure continues, “wealth protection” could be a major reason for encryption in all regions by the third quarter.
Second, there is the shift from speculation to structured trading. Risk appetite has evolved as the global crypto market enters the late Bull Phase and moves from entertainment-driven speculation to a strategy for structured yields.
Third, it is set to accelerate portfolio diversification. New stories such as retail enthusiasm for Mimecoin and AI tokens are expected to drive short-term influx, but research shows that these segments remain highly unstable. Public Chain Tokens and Platform Projects continue to be dominant “Core Holdings.”
Fourth, the wealth layer is becoming more polarized. Capital strengthens Crypto’s role as an accessible financial tool, being distributed more evenly on a broader user base.
