Coinbase Takes a Step Back in Argentina: What's Next for Crypto?

Coinbase has decided to hit the brakes on its peso-based services in Argentina, just under a year after it started operating there. This isn't a full stop, though. The company is keeping its crypto services running while it figures out a better way to handle local financial operations. Starting January 31, 2026, users won't be able to buy or sell USDC with Argentine pesos or withdraw funds to local bank accounts. But don't worry, crypto-to-crypto trading is still on. Users have until the cutoff date to wrap up any peso-based USDC transactions and withdrawals.So, why the change? Well, running local fiat operations can be tricky, especially in a country with unclear regulations and high compliance costs. Ana Gabriela Ojeda, a big name in Latin America's Web3 space, pointed out that these challenges are more about the local financial system than crypto itself. Despite this pause, Coinbase isn't leaving Argentina entirely. It plans to stay connected through Base, its Ethereum layer-2 network, and continue working with local partners like Ripio. Meanwhile, Argentina's central bank is thinking about letting traditional banks trade cryptocurrencies again. This would be a big shift from 2022 when they banned banks from offering crypto services due to risks.