Regulatory-driven infrastructure expansion across Gulf states is stimulating digital-asset markets, with the UAE accounting for about 38% of crypto trading activity, ether around 22%, and dollar-backed stablecoins near 30%.

Economic instability in Egypt, Turkey, Lebanon, and Iran is pushing people toward Bitcoin and dollar-pegged stablecoins to protect purchasing power.

Egypt and other economies’ currency volatility is lifting crypto adoption, while the UAE approaches roughly $53 billion in annual volume driven by institutional capital and supportive regulation.

Note: these figures come from Chainalysis for July 2023–June 2024 and may not align with newer estimates; regional data should not be treated as a single market.

Bitcoin briefly fell with other risk assets after mid-2025 hostilities, then rebounded as investors rotated back in, pushing its market share to a one-month high around 64.8%.

A January 2026 Fuze projection suggests regional crypto transactions could exceed $500 billion annually, while the Bitcoin Policy Institute expects growth to moderate to about 33% year-over-year.

Despite moderation, several estimates indicate potential regional transactions surpassing $500 billion annually, underscoring strong macro-driven demand.

Iran-related crypto movement included about $10.3 million moving off Iranian exchanges between late February and early March, following U.S.-Israeli airstrikes, per Chainalysis.

Crypto markets operated 24/7 even when traditional markets were closed, aiding wealth preservation and value transfers during disruption.

The region accounted for roughly 7.5% of global on-chain crypto volume in 2023–2024, about $338.7 billion, with caveats about measurement methods.

The Iran–Israel conflict sparked initial volatility in Bitcoin, followed by capital rotation into the cryptocurrency as risk perceptions cooled, highlighting resilience amid geopolitical tension.

Turkey remains the region’s largest crypto market, processing about $200 billion annually, while the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar show rapid growth and rising institutional participation.