Worldwide Crypto Readiness Report
Which countries are the most prepared for cryptocurrency adoption?
Cryptocurrency adoption has exploded over the last five years. Once only regarded as a speculative asset, many companies, governments and individuals have realised its potential and embraced it as the future of financial technology. El Salvador even made history last year for being the first country to recognise Bitcoin as legal tender.
But which are the countries most prepared for the crypto revolution? We’ve delved into the data to find out, looking at the number of crypto ATMs, the legislation and taxes surrounding cryptocurrencies, the number of blockchain startups and the countries with the highest level of interest in crypto to find the most crypto-ready countries.
The most crypto-ready countries
1. Hong Kong / Crypto ready score: 8.6/10
Taking the top spot is the island nation of Hong Kong. The country can be crowned the most crypto-ready as it ranks in the top three for three of the categories we looked at, including the number of blockchain startups per 100,00 people and the number of crypto ATMs proportional to the population. Thanks to its small land area, the city-state has the smallest area per crypto ATM. Hong Kong also doesn’t tax capital gains on crypto, making it appealing to investors.
2. United States of America / Crypto ready score: 7.7/10
Up next is the United States of America. The US takes second place thanks to the huge number of crypto ATMs in the country, more than ten times that of its closest competitor, or 3.6 more per 100,000 people.
3. Switzerland / Crypto ready score: 7.5/10
In third place is the European nation of Switzerland. World-renowned as a centre for finance, the country ranks highly thanks to its high number of crypto ATMs per 100,000 people and no capital gains tax, ranking in the top five for both factors. The country is also one of the most enterprising, taking second place for the number of blockchain startups.
The countries with the most crypto ATMs per 100,000 people
1. United States of America – 1 per 100,000 people
Crypto ATMs are key in preparing countries to adopt cryptocurrencies as they allow less tech-savvy people to start using crypto. As well as having the highest number of crypto ATMs overall at nearly 34,000, the US takes the top spot for the highest proportion of crypto ATMs with 10.1 per 100,000 people.
2. Canada – 5 per 100,000 people
Canada is home to the world’s first crypto ATM, installed as far back as 2013, although the country has been slower to adopt the technology than its neighbour, the US. The Great White North has nearly 2,500 crypto ATMs or 6.5 per 100,000 people, earning it second place for the factor.
3. Hong Kong – 2 per 100,000 people
Up next is Hong Kong, with only two crypto ATMs per 100,000 people, or 149 in total. Hong Kong is the Asian capital for crypto ATMs, although this status has recently come under threat as the Hong Kong Monetary Authority has restricted access to investing in digital assets to only professional investors.
The countries with the smallest area per crypto ATM
1. Hong Kong – 7 Kilometres
Taking the top spot for the smallest area per crypto ATM is Hong Kong, with residents never more than 7 kilometres away from an ATM. This comes as no surprise as the tiny island nation has the smallest land area of the locations in the index twinned with one of the highest numbers of crypto ATMs.
2. Switzerland – 260 Kilometres
Up next is the financial capital of Europe. With its first crypto ATM installed nearly 10 years ago, Switzerland was one of Europe’s earliest adopters of the technology. The Alpine country has a crypto ATM every 260 kilometres, taking it to second place.
3. United States of America – 271 Kilometres
In third is the US with only 271 Kilometres between crypto ATMs. The US has fully embraced this accessible method of buying Bitcoin and altcoins as crypto ATMs can be found everywhere in the country, including several popular supermarket chains.
The countries with the lowest crypto taxes
1. Hong Kong, Switzerland, Panama, Portugal, Germany, Malaysia and Turkey
Seven countries share the top spot for the lowest crypto taxes as profits made from cryptocurrency trading are exempt from capital gains taxes for individuals.
Hong Kong regards cryptocurrencies as virtual commodities, not currency, so capital gains don’t apply. This is also similar to Switzerland’s stance on crypto which considers it a private wealth asset, which isn’t subject to capital gains tax. Portugal and Panama also don’t regard cryptocurrencies as legal tender therefore capital gains tax doesn’t apply to profits.
Malaysia doesn’t regard cryptocurrencies as legal tender or a capital asset, leaving it tax-free for private investors, although if it’s a regular source of income, it is subject to income taxes.
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Private investors in Turkey also don’t have to worry about capital gains taxes, as the government has no regulations in place for individuals holding crypto, although businesses dealing in crypto have to pay a 20% corporation tax on their profits.
Germany takes a different approach, with some stipulations for private investors. Capital gains tax does not apply if the cryptocurrency is held for more than a year.
2. Indonesia
Taking second place is Indonesia, charging private investors a mere 0.1% capital gains tax on their crypto profits. The country only introduced this new tax in May 2025, to match its tax on shares as both are considered commodities. Crypto transactions are also subject to value-added tax in Indonesia under this new law.
3. Chile
Up next is the South American nation, Chile. The country charges private investors a minimum of 4% on their crypto investments, unlike many other nations, Chile doesn’t have a separate classification for capital gains, so any profits made are considered income and taxed accordingly.
The countries with the most blockchain startups
1. Switzerland – 9 per 100,000 people
Switzerland can be crowned the country with the most blockchain startups, boasting 12.9 per 100,000 residents, or 1,128 in total. Thanks to the proactive approach taken by the Swiss financial authorities, the blockchain industry is booming in the country, with 14 of its startups worth over $1 billion.
2. Hong Kong 3 per 100,000 people
Up next is the island nation of Hong Kong. Hong Kong has long been the financial hub of Asia and has played a key role in the development of now widespread blockchain technologies such as the stablecoin Tether. The country has three blockchain startups per 100,000 people, which takes it to second place.
3. United Arab Emirates 2 per 100,000 people
Taking third place The UAE has some of the most forward-thinking entrepreneurs when it comes to financial technology, with 1.2 blockchain startups per 100,000 people. The United Arab Emirates is an ideal location for blockchain startups thanks to its existing business networks and connections to North Africa, India and The West and its citizens have taken full advantage.
The countries with the most interest in cryptocurrencies
1. Australia 4,579 “cryptocurrency” searches per 100,000 people
Australia tops the list as the country with the highest level of interest in cryptocurrency, with over 1000 more searches per 100,000 people than second place. The crypto market has developed rapidly in the region, with just under 18% of Australia’s population owning crypto in 2025.
2. Ireland – 3,472 “cryptocurrency” searches per 100,000 people
Taking the time to learn about cryptocurrency is very important if you want to prepare for the future of finance and make some investments that could pay off in the future. Nobody is more aware of this than the residents of Ireland, who take second place as the most crypto-curious country with just under 3,500 searches per 100,000 people.
3. United Kingdom – 3,409 “cryptocurrency” searches per 100,000 people
UK residents are some of the most forward-thinking when it comes to new financial technology. They took third place for this factor with just over 3,400 searches for “cryptocurrency” per 100,000 people.
Methodology
We wanted to find out which countries are ready for the widespread adoption of cryptocurrency. To do this we gathered data on a number of different factors relating to availability, taxes and legislation, startups using blockchain technology and interest surrounding cryptocurrencies.
We then gave each country a normalised score out of ten on each of the factors, before taking an average across each of these scores to reach our final overall score out of ten.
Number of Crypto ATMs per 100,000 people: The number of Crypto ATMs in each country according to Coin ATM Radar per 100,000 of the population.
Legislation: The laws surrounding cryptocurrencies according to Wikipedia, each country was given a point if they allowed cryptocurrencies to be owned and an additional point if they are allowed to be used in banks.
Minimum Capital Gains Tax Rate for individuals: The smallest rate of capital gains tax applicable for individuals in each country according to list articles.
Number of Blockchain Startups per 100,000 people: The total number of startups using blockchain technology in each country according to list articles per 100,000 of the population.
Crypto searches per 100,000 people: The total number of Google searches in each country for “cryptocurrency” from May 2025 to April 2025 according to Google ads per 100,000 of the population.
