Chainalysis reports 43-fold surge in China’s P2P stablecoin wallets

China restricts crypto. Chinese users keep sending stablecoins to each other anyway, and in growing numbers.

According to the Chainalysis East Asia Crypto Adoption Report, released on October 5, 2026, the number of unique wallets sending peer-to-peer stablecoin transactions in China grew 43-fold between Q1 2024 and Q2 2026.

The numbers behind the surge

Chainalysis found that $104.1 billion moved through approximately 18.1 million self-custodied stablecoin transfers from July 2025 to June 2026. Self-custodied means users held their own keys, with no exchange sitting in the middle.

Stablecoin turnover in China reached an annualized rate of 33.2 times, according to the report. The global average sits at 9.3 times.

Chainalysis reads that pattern as a sign stablecoins are increasingly functioning as working capital. These coins are not parked as savings. They are being spent, settled and passed along.

Domestic P2P activity now accounts for 59.1% of China’s estimated crypto economy, which the report puts at at least $176 billion. That share represents a 3.5-fold increase compared to previous periods.

Growth during a crackdown

In February 2026, Chinese authorities reinforced restrictions on unauthorized stablecoins and tokenized assets. The following month, domestic stablecoin transfers posted a $4.9 billion monthly volume spike, per Chainalysis. That surge arrived while local regulators were amplifying bans on crypto trading.

The report frames this as a shift in user behavior rather than a temporary blip. Chinese users appear to be favoring decentralized, direct wallet-to-wallet transfers over centralized platforms.

The wider East Asia picture

China is not the only story in the Chainalysis report. South Korea emerged as the leader of East Asia’s crypto economy, valued at approximately $1.2 trillion. Of that total, $449.1 billion is attributed to a specific segment of South Korea’s crypto market highlighted in the report.

Hong Kong, meanwhile, is following a different track, with institutional inflows shaping its market.

What this means for regulators and markets

Restrictions aimed at platforms work best when activity runs through platforms. Once users move to self-custody and direct transfers, there are fewer chokepoints to press on. The Chainalysis data suggests a meaningful share of Chinese stablecoin users has already made that move.

A 43-fold increase in active wallets during a period of reinforced bans says something about how much users value dollar-pegged tokens in a tightly controlled environment. Stablecoins circulating 33.2 times a year look less like speculative positions and more like operating cash for whatever commerce users are conducting.