Argentina Flocked to Stablecoins Ahead of President Milei’s Midterms Win

_{Photo credit: Senado de la Nación Argentina, CC BY-SA 4.0}

Before Argentina’s legislative midterm elections on October 26, 2025, Argentines had traded pesos into US dollar-pegged stablecoins as the local currency fluctuated amid economic and political uncertainty. President Javier Milei’s party, La Libertad Avanza, won a significant victory with nearly 41% of the vote, allowing Milei to continue with his policy of libertarian economic reform.

The former Tether expansion manager for Argentina, Facundo Werning, told Decrypt that  there had been a conservative estimate of $13.4 million traded on October 26 “across the USD stablecoin to [Argentine peso] trading pair.” 

Argentinian crypto app Lemon also recorded its highest-ever one-hour volume of trades at 9pm local time on October 26, coinciding with the announcement of the election results. 

Argentines may have been purchasing US dollar-pegged stablecoins in case the peso crashed following the election.

Although the figure has declined from 219.89% in 2024 to 35.91% in 2025, Argentina still has among the highest inflation rates in the world. The Argentine peso also hit its record low against the US dollar on October 24, despite a $40 billion bailout package from the United States.

The surge in stablecoin activity reflects the role of “crypto dollars” in Argentina’s fractured exchange rate ecosystem. Official exchanges are limited, and the informal “blue dollar” market is opaque, while stablecoins offer both continuous access and price transparency. One Lemon spokesperson described the crypto dollar as “a real-time thermometer of Argentina’s economic and political pulse.”

Over the weekend, the Argentine peso fell to 1,572.50 ARS per crypto dollar at around 2pm local time, before strengthening to about 1,350 ARS by 10am Monday, demonstrating confidence in Milei’s victory.