Venezuelans turn to USDT as bolivar weakens

USDT prices on Binance P2P in Venezuela jumped 16% in 30 days, reflecting bolivar devaluation. Venezuelans increasingly use USDT for transactions and as a hedge against inflation.

Venezuelans are increasingly turning to Binance’s peer-to-peer (P2P) platform to purchase USDT, a dollar-pegged stablecoin, as the bolivar continues to weaken amid soaring inflation and rapid money supply growth. In the past 30 days, the price of USDT in Venezuela’s P2P market surged by about 16%, rising from around 690 to over 800 bolivars per USDT. This jump reflects not a change in USDT’s value, but a sharp devaluation of the bolivar, driven by the central bank’s liquidity injections and strict banking caps on dollar access. With limited legal avenues to obtain U.S. dollars, both individuals and businesses are using Binance as a primary channel to hedge against inflation and preserve purchasing power. USDT has become a key reference for pricing goods, rent, and salaries, reportedly accounting for the majority of transactions in the country. This trend highlights crypto’s growing role as a financial lifeline in inflation-prone economies.