Bolivia’s struggling economy has found a curious new lifeline, stablecoins. Yes, the very digital coins that some call the financial equivalent of a unicorn toy are now the preferred tender at Toyota, Yamaha, and BYD dealerships in Bolivia.
When dollars dry up, you turn to USDT, or else.
Banks are allowed to handle Bitcoin and stablecoins
The story gets better. Paolo Ardoino, Tether’s CEO, casually dropped the news Sunday that these big vehicle makers are now officially trading cars for USDT in Bolivia.
Toyota, BYD, Yamaha accepting USDT in Bolivia
"Tu vehiculo en dolares digital"
USDT is the digital dollar for hundreds of millions in the emerging markets.
Ubiquity. pic.twitter.com/0X0SH3USXX— Paolo Ardoino 🤖 (@paoloardoino) September 21, 2025
BitGo, a crypto security outfit, proudly confirmed the deal, sharing snaps of a Toyota dealership flaunting easy, fast, and safe tags to woo crypto buyers.
They didn’t just slap the signs up tho, BitGo helped Toyota handle the crypto side securely and smoothly, because nothing says secure ride like using digital dollars for your ride off the showroom floor.
Now, rewind a bit, Bolivia wasn’t always this crypto-happy. It had a locked-down crypto ban until June last year.
Since then, the snowball’s turned into an avalanche with banks allowed to handle Bitcoin and stablecoins.
The state-owned oil giant even got in on the act back in March, approving crypto payments for fuel imports because, frankly, the US dollar is about as rare as a unicorn in these parts.
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A deal with El Salvador
So, yes, while everyone in Bolivia still talks in bolivianos, the locals are losing faith fast and flocking to whatever currency doesn’t scream volatility, whether that’s the USD or cryptocurrency.
Even Bolivia’s top bank granted crypto a shiny badge of viable and reliable alternative to regular money and signed a deal with El Salvador to boost crypto adoption, a move that sounds like a cross-continental meeting of starry-eyed crypto apostles.
Local shops haven’t missed the memo either. At airports, basic goods now wear price tags in USDT, giving travelers a taste of the crypto economy in real time. Importers lean on Tether to keep the wheels of trade greased.
TowerBank’s digital assets boss, Gabriel Campa, explained that businesses buy stablecoins locally or offshore, swap them for US dollars, then pay suppliers abroad, spinning a stablecoin-powered trading merry-go-round that keeps the economy moving while the USD hides under the bed.
Crushing corruption
But Bolivia’s crypto story is about to face a plot twist. As experts highlighted, in October, the nation will elect between Christian Democrat Rodrigo Paz Pereira and Jorge “Tuto” Quiroga, who have very different ideas about digital futures.
Bolivia’s crypto market surged, daily USDt liquidity grew from $20K to nearly $1M in under a year.@gcampa86 explains why @towerbankintl is focused on this growth and helping re-establish trade connections. pic.twitter.com/sepWo8Ef8p
— Bitfinex (@bitfinex) September 19, 2025
Paz Pereira is ready to sprinkle some blockchain fairy dust for transparency to crush corruption. Quiroga’s crypto take? Still a mystery.
After nearly 20 years under the Movement for Socialism, whoever wins will steer Bolivia’s fate. Maybe they will doing it with USDT.
Disclosure:This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.
Kriptoworld.com accepts no liability for any errors in the articles or for any financial loss resulting from incorrect information.
Cryptocurrency and Web3 expert, founder of Kriptoworld
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With years of experience covering the blockchain space, András delivers insightful reporting on DeFi, tokenization, altcoins, and crypto regulations shaping the digital economy.
📅 Published: September 23, 2025 • 🕓 Last updated: September 23, 2025
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