Chainalysis: US Becomes Net Bitcoin Inflow Country for First Time in 2026

According to a report titled "North America: The Inside Story of Agentic Commerce Growth" released by Chainalysis on Wednesday, the United States became a net bitcoin inflow country in 2026, the first time since 2022. Data shows that institutions have been consistently buying bitcoin this year, while retail investors overall have been selling. The report states that U.S. dollar stablecoins provide a way for people without U.S. bank accounts to hold dollars, while Americans themselves already have dollar accounts, so the rest of the world is turning to digital dollars, whereas Americans rely more on bitcoin as a scarce store of value. The report notes that since the launch of spot bitcoin ETFs in 2024, the U.S. share of global bitcoin activity has risen in every reporting period, and even as the U.S. crypto economy contracted 2.2% to $2.78 trillion during the bear market, it retained most of the gains that nearly doubled in 2025. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission approved bitcoin ETFs in January 2024, after rejecting such products for a decade; these funds, managed by Wall Street institutions including BlackRock, Fidelity, and more recently Morgan Stanley, have set the most successful launch record in ETF history. The report also states that stablecoins have converted U.S. debt into the preferred currency for peer-to-peer economies and cross-border businesses, with stablecoins continuing to enter new use cases in 2026, primarily overseas, generating billions of dollars in economic activity for U.S. businesses and the government. Since President Trump took office, multiple pro-crypto laws and executive orders have been signed, including the GENIUS Act signed in 2025, which allows entities such as banks to issue stablecoins, provided they are backed by assets like U.S. Treasuries and disclose reserves monthly.