Orbital, a global payment orchestration platform across stablecoins and traditional payment rails, today released its H1 2026 Stablecoin Retail Payments Index. The Index finds that the 2026 crypto “winter” has become the clearest test as to where digital assets provide genuine utility. While global crypto app usage fell almost 40% from January 2025 to June 2026, one in four markets either retained the same number of users or grew, suggesting demand for stablecoins is increasingly driven by practical financial need rather than speculation. The markets that proved the most resilient were not necessarily those with the highest rates of inflation. Instead, they were typically those where consumers face unstable currencies, limited access to US dollars or gaps in the traditional financial system. In these markets, stablecoins are increasingly being used as payment infrastructure to solve “broken” currencies.Key findings include:Crypto usage peaked before the price peakCrypto app monthly active users peaked in January 2025 and declined steadily from there. By the time Bitcoin reached its October 2025 all-time high, app usage had already fallen about 15% from the January peak, showing that consumer attention rolled over before the market price did.A small group of markets held up or grew19 of the 80 markets analysed either held up or grew across the period. Venezuela recorded 55.1% usage growth and now has one of the world’s highest crypto app penetration rates at 21.3% of the internet-enabled population. Angola nearly doubled its user base. These markets are concentrated in economies where crypto is used to hold and move dollars, or where the local financial system does not fully meet consumer needs.Speculation left, utility stayedAt the other end of the table, the steepest declines came in markets that had been most exposed to speculative retail activity. Nigeria fell 59.6%, Brazil 53.6%, the United States 50.9%, Türkiye 49.6%, the United Kingdom 48.6% and Pakistan 46.5%, underscoring the split between hype-driven usage and utility-led adoption.A broken-money story, not an inflation storyThe data suggests that headline inflation alone is not a good predictor of stablecoin use does not explain adoption. While some high-inflation markets held up, while some lower-inflation markets also grew, pointing instead to currency instability and dollar access as the more important drivers. In many of these markets, stablecoins increasingly function as a practical financial rail rather than a speculative asset.Stablecoin utility comes in to sharp focus The bear market has highlighted a clear divide between speculative crypto activity and stablecoin utility. In markets where digital dollars solve a real problem, such as currency instability, limited banking access, or difficulty accessing USD, stablecoin usage is proving far more durable.“Rather than killing crypto usage outright, the bear market has cleared out the hype and left behind the parts people actually use,” said Luke Wingfield Digby, Co-Founder of Orbital. “Orbital’s analysis suggests this base of utility is likely to serve as the floor for the next cycle, with speculative demand building on top of it later.”NoYesCryptocurrencies18 Aug, 2026