Stablecoins for companies in Bolivia: the legal framework
Bolivia's framework for using stablecoins rests on two pieces: the central bank's Resolution 082/2024 and Supreme Decree 5384 of 2025. This guide explains which authority does what, what is allowed and what your company should confirm with a lawyer.
A Bolivian company that decides to pay a supplier or collect from a foreign client in stablecoins faces a question that comes before any technical one: which rule covers it. In Bolivia, two rules redefined the use of stablecoins between June 2024 and May 2025: Central Bank Resolution 082/2024 and Supreme Decree 5384. Many summaries mix what those texts say with what people expect of them.
At Soulbit Academy we keep the two apart. This guide covers only the regulatory framework: what applies, which authority acts and what remains unresolved. The economic context, usage figures and the reasons behind demand are in our analysis of the dollar shortage and foreign trade, which we do not repeat here. Soulbit is a payment and treasury rail in stablecoins for companies, and its reach in Bolivia has a limit that is set out at the end.
Stablecoins in Bolivia: which rules apply to a company today
Stablecoins in Bolivia rest on two rules: Board Resolution 082/2024 of the Central Bank of Bolivia (BCB) and Supreme Decree 5384 of May 2025. The first enabled the use of payment channels; the second defined who may provide services with virtual assets and before which authority.
The BCB reported that, through Board Resolution No. 082/2024 of 25 June 2024, it repealed Resolution 144/2020, which allows electronic payment channels and instruments to be used to buy and sell virtual assets. In its June 2025 press release, the BCB notes that the Government promoted Supreme Decree 5384, which regulates Financial Technology Companies and creates the figure of the Virtual Asset Service Provider.
| Rule | Date | What it sets for the company |
|---|---|---|
| BCB Board Resolution 144/2020 | 15 December 2020 | Restrictive regime, repealed in 2024 |
| BCB Board Resolution 082/2024 | 25 June 2024 | Enables electronic payment channels and instruments to buy and sell virtual assets |
| Supreme Decree 5384 | 7 May 2025 | Regulates Financial Technology Companies and defines the virtual asset service provider |
| Regulation for Financial Technology Companies (ASFI/540/2025) | 3 July 2025 | Governs the incorporation and operation of Financial Technology Companies under the decree |
Two methodological warnings. ASFI information bulletin no. 69 confirms that Resolution ASFI/540/2025 approved that regulation on the basis of Decree 5384, but its full text should be read at the official source before operating. And the framework is still being built: any summary, this one included, ages.
What each authority does: BCB, ASFI and UIF
Three authorities act on a company that uses stablecoins in Bolivia, each with a different role. The first is the Central Bank of Bolivia, which regulates the use of payment channels and instruments. The second is the Financial System Supervisory Authority (ASFI), which under the decree issues the specific rules and grants the incorporation permit and operating licence to Financial Technology Companies. The third is the Financial Investigations Unit (UIF), the anti-money-laundering authority.
The title of the BCB's own release says the rule update was made in coordination with ASFI and the UIF, which confirms that the three act on the same phenomenon from different angles. What we could not verify at an official source is a specific UIF rule addressed to virtual asset service providers, and the text of the decree does not mention the UIF or money-laundering prevention.
The National Tax Service (SIN) joins them on tax matters, and the National Customs Authority when the operation stems from an import. The international standard behind the provider concept is the one set by the FATF.
What is allowed and what is not for a company using stablecoins
A Bolivian company may buy, sell and use virtual assets through electronic payment channels since June 2024, but that enabling step is not legal tender status. The boliviano remains the legal currency, and the rule cited does not declare stablecoins a mandatory means of payment or a currency.
Can a company collect or pay in stablecoins in Bolivia?
It can operate with them as an asset, provided it does so within the rules in force and documents every transaction. The BCB's enabling step refers to using electronic channels to buy and sell them. It does not say that an invoice or contract in stablecoins replaces the company's invoicing, customs or reporting duties.
Yes, within limits: as of October 2026, and based on the official sources we could read, the framework comes down to three points. First, buying and selling virtual assets through electronic payment channels has been enabled since June 2024. Second, providing virtual asset services to third parties for profit falls inside the perimeter of Decree 5384 and requires ASFI authorisation. Third, the official sources we consulted contain neither an express ban nor a specific authorisation for holding stablecoins in a company treasury.
Is anything prohibited?
Resolution 144/2020 no longer applies, so the restriction it represented is gone. What remains in force are the other obligations: identify the counterparty, justify the origin of funds and not use the asset to evade controls. A company that operates without knowing who is on the other side of the transfer takes a risk that the enabling step does not remove.
Virtual asset service providers: what Decree 5384 defines
Supreme Decree 5384, signed on 7 May 2025, defines the virtual asset service provider (VASP) as a person or entity that, for profit, carries out operations with virtual assets on behalf of third parties. The definition follows the language of the FATF international standard.
According to the text of the decree, the definition covers four activities. The first is exchange between virtual assets and fiat currency. The second is exchange between virtual assets. The third is transfer and custody or administration of virtual assets. The fourth is providing services tied to the offer or sale of a virtual asset. The decree also defines a virtual asset as a digital representation of value that can be traded or transferred digitally, and it excludes digital representations of fiat currency.
That exclusion raises a question the decree does not answer on its own: whether a dollar-referenced stablecoin falls on the virtual asset side or on the fiat-representation side. We do not treat it as settled. It is a matter of legal interpretation that your lawyer should confirm with ASFI.
The decree establishes incorporation and licensing steps for new Financial Technology Companies and orders existing providers to adapt. According to ASFI’s October 2026 guide, an existing firm may continue operating with a Certificate of Adaptation while it completes that process; a licence authorises the services it lists. ASFI may also require a firm to test its services in a Controlled Testing Environment.
For your company, the practical consequence concerns the counterparty. If you hire a local third party to convert or transfer assets on your behalf, that party fits the definition and should be able to show its status before ASFI. If you only move your own balance, the figure does not reach you directly. The difference matters: being a provider is not the same as being a provider's client.
Accounting and tax treatment: what is not fixed
As of October 2026 we did not find a specific official Bolivian rule setting the accounting or tax treatment of stablecoins for a company. We do not claim that none exists: we claim that we did not locate one in the official sources consulted, and that you should ask your adviser about it before operating.
Without a specific rule, prudent practice has three pillars. The first is to agree with the accountant on a recognition criterion and put it in writing. The second is to keep, for every operation, the date, the amount, the counterparty, the transaction identifier and the commercial document behind it. The third is to confirm with the SIN the treatment of any gain or loss from value differences, and with the customs authority the treatment of an operation tied to goods.
As a conceptual reference, not a Bolivian rule, you can read how to account for USDC under IFRS.
What a Bolivian company should review before using stablecoins
Before moving a first payment in stablecoins, a Bolivian company should review four things: the counterparty, the channel, the file and the validity of the rule. They are compliance controls, not technical ones.
A hypothetical case shows the order. A logistics firm in La Paz wants to pay a freelance engineer abroad part of a monthly fee in USDC. The amounts are assumptions and are not Soulbit prices. First it checks that the recipient is who they say they are and that the address was confirmed through a second channel. Then it agrees with its accountant how the payment will be recorded. It keeps the contract, the invoice and the transaction identifier in one file. Finally it asks its lawyer to check the local provider's status with ASFI, including a licence or, where applicable, a Certificate of Adaptation.
How do you check that a local provider is authorised?
You check it at the official source, not in the provider's advertising. As ASFI explained on 29 October 2026, a licence authorises the listed services, while some existing firms may continue operating with a Certificate of Adaptation. A No Objection or incorporation authorisation alone does not authorise public service. Check the provider and the activity covered in ASFI records.
A well-documented operation withstands a review. Identification of the origin and destination of funds is reinforced by KYT and AML transaction monitoring, and the company's onboarding by KYB verification. The regional view, with the criteria of the other countries, is in the Latin American crypto regulation landscape, and the operational detail in the guide to crypto payments in Bolivia.
What Soulbit V1 delivers in Bolivia and what it does not
Soulbit V1 is a custodial business platform with institutional custody that holds balances in USDC and USDT, and it covers no rail in bolivianos. It is worth being explicit, because in Bolivia the product boundary weighs more than in other countries.
| Bolivian company need | Covered by V1? | How it is handled |
|---|---|---|
| Hold balances in USDC and USDT | Yes | Company account with institutional custody |
| Pay suppliers and teams abroad | Yes | Single and bulk sends, recurring payroll included |
| Collect from clients abroad | Yes | Payment links and collection QR codes |
| Switch from stablecoin to USD, EUR or GBP | Yes | OTC conversion on quote |
| Verification and compliance | Yes | KYB and AML/KYT monitoring |
| Receive or send bolivianos | No | The only local banking rail in V1 is Colombia |
| Virtual asset service provider licence in Bolivia | No | Soulbit does not claim one; ask your lawyer |
Two closing clarifications. The first is that a Bolivian company must handle the step into bolivianos on its own, under local rules. The second is that none of the rules cited turns Soulbit into a Bolivian financial entity or replaces the compliance checks that your country's law requires.
Frequently asked questions
Are stablecoins legal for a company in Bolivia?
Since June 2024 the Central Bank of Bolivia has allowed electronic payment channels and instruments to be used to buy and sell virtual assets, after repealing Resolution 144/2020. That enables the activity but creates no special status: a company stays subject to its tax, customs and anti-money-laundering obligations.
Which authority regulates firms that provide stablecoin services in Bolivia?
Supreme Decree 5384 of 2025 gives ASFI the task of issuing rules and licensing Financial Technology Companies, a category that includes virtual asset service providers. The central bank regulates the use of payment channels, and the UIF keeps the anti-money-laundering role.
What is a virtual asset service provider under Decree 5384?
It is a person or entity that, for profit, carries out virtual asset operations on behalf of others: exchange with fiat or between virtual assets, transfers, custody or administration, and services tied to the offer of a virtual asset. A company that only uses the asset in its own operations does not fit that definition.
How should a Bolivian company account for stablecoins?
We did not find a specific official Bolivian rule setting their accounting or tax treatment as of October 2026. The company should document its criterion with its accountant and tax adviser and keep a record of every transaction to explain it to the national tax service.
Can a Bolivian company receive bolivianos through Soulbit?
No. The only local banking rail in Soulbit V1 is Colombia. A Bolivian company would hold balances in USDC and USDT and fiat in USD, EUR and GBP, and would handle the step into local currency on its own, under Bolivian rules.
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