China Crypto Activity Hits 176.3 Billion in Year Despite Restrictions

Crypto activity linked to China reached an estimated $176.3 billion over the 12 months from July 2025 to June 2026. Peer-to-peer transactions dominated this activity, accounting for 59.1% of the total. The data reflects transaction flows rather than the number of participants or the use of crypto for purchasing goods and services.

Domestic peer-to-peer transactions in China surged, making up 3.5 times the share compared to the previous reporting period, though the exact dates of the earlier period were not specified. Wallets associated with China saw a high turnover of self-custodied stablecoins, averaging 33.2 times per year, significantly higher than the global benchmark of 9.3 times. These wallets held around $3.1 billion in stablecoins and executed 18.1 million transactions totaling $104.1 billion.

The frequent turnover of stablecoins suggests their use for settlement or working capital, though it does not confirm their role as a domestic payment network. Monthly stablecoin peer-to-peer activity in China increased for 13 consecutive months starting in March 2025, coinciding with a government guideline aimed at improving the social credit system. However, no direct link between the policy and crypto activity was established.

In February 2026, Chinese authorities classified crypto-related business as illegal financial activity, prohibiting fiat-to-crypto exchanges, overseas services for Chinese residents, and related financial services. The reported $176.3 billion figure may actually understate the true scale of China’s crypto economy due to its difficulty to track.