Colombia, Chile and Peru arrive at 2026 with three very different crypto regulatory models. Chile is entering the fifth year of the Fintech Law 21,521, considered the most advanced regulation in Latin America. Colombia consolidates the Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) Registry at the Financial Superintendency and adds a new tax-reporting obligation to the DIAN. Peru keeps the most limited framework, centred on anti-money-laundering via the SBS/UIF, but has just opened an unprecedented banking experiment with the BCP sandbox.
This guide cross-compares the three frameworks: which regulators are involved, which platforms operate within the law in each country, what tax burdens apply and where institutional Bitcoin access stands for the Andean investor. The preview conclusion: the retail layer is well covered in all three markets, but the institutional layer (locally listed Bitcoin treasuries, or equivalents) hasn't yet reached the Latin American Pacific.
The Andean regulatory map in 2026
A quick comparative view. Chile — regulator CMF, framework Fintech Law 21,521 + NCG 502, the most mature in Latam, with Open Banking arriving in July. Colombia — regulator SFC, Decree 1297 (2023) + Resolution 000240, VASP Registry operational, with DIAN tax reporting. Peru — regulator SBS (UIF), VASP rule via the UIF, AML focus, with the BCP crypto sandbox. The three models agree on something important: all require specific registration or supervision of providers offering crypto services to the local public. The difference is in the depth and scope of the regime, and in how taxation and institutional access are treated.
Chile — Latam's most mature model
Chile passed the Fintech Law 21,521 in December 2022, considered by most regulatory analysts the most complete crypto framework in Latin America. The law established four regulated activities relevant to crypto: alternative transaction platforms (exchanges), investment advice, custody of financial instruments and order routing. The Financial Market Commission (CMF) developed the operating framework with General Standard No. 502 (NCG 502), defining the registration and authorisation of crypto financial-service providers.
As of mid-2026, the framework is fully implemented after a 2023–2024 transition. Any exchange operating with Chilean clients must be registered with the CMF as a financial-service provider under the Fintech Law. The next relevant milestone is the full launch of the Open Banking system in July 2026, which will open financial-data interoperability between banks, fintechs and registered crypto providers — promising smoother integration between traditional bank account and crypto account than in any other Latin American market.
The three main Chilean exchanges are Buda.com (founded in Santiago, operating in Chile, Argentina, Colombia and Peru), CryptoMKT (also HQ'd in Chile, five Latin American countries) and Orionx (focus on Chile and Colombia). All three are CMF-registered and operate under the full Fintech Law framework. As for Bitcoin treasuries: no Chilean company listed on the Santiago exchange has declared Bitcoin on its corporate balance sheet to date — a notable absence given the maturity of the Chilean framework, and a niche likely to be filled in the next 12–24 months.
Colombia — VASP consolidation in 2026
Colombia arrives at 2026 with the Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) Registry fully operational. The framework was created with Decree 1297 of 2023, and supervision sits with the Financial Superintendency of Colombia (SFC). Any company offering crypto buying-selling, custody, transfer or intermediation to the Colombian public must be registered.
The most relevant change of recent months came with DIAN Resolution 000240 (December 24, 2025), requiring VASPs to report to the Colombian tax authority all crypto operations above $50,000 carried out in the country. It's the first systematic crypto tax-reporting obligation in Colombia and took effect in January 2026. The framework involves several institutional actors: the SFC supervises the VASP Registry, the Banco de la República keeps its cautious stance on crypto as a means of payment, and the DIAN leads the tax regime.
The regulated brokers operating in Colombia are mainly regional platforms: Buda.com, Bitso (with an active presence), Banxa and CryptoMKT. As for Colombian Bitcoin treasuries: there are none, at this guide's close, listed on the Colombian Stock Exchange (BVC) with declared Bitcoin. Same situation as Chile.
Peru — the most limited, with banking experimentation
The Peruvian framework is the most narrow of the three. Crypto regulation is channelled mainly via the Superintendency of Banking, Insurance and Pension Funds (SBS) through its Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF), focused exclusively on anti-money-laundering and counter-terrorist-financing obligations. There's no specific crypto tax framework yet, nor a VASP registry with the scope of Chile's or Colombia's.
The rule requires crypto companies domiciled, incorporated or with a local branch in Peru to register as reporting entities with the UIF. This includes platforms like Buda, Buenbit (the Argentine one, also in Peru), AgenteBTC and Bitinka. International platforms without a local presence (Binance, Coinbase) fall outside the Peruvian framework. The milestone that changes the picture came in April 2025, when the SBS authorised a regulatory sandbox that let the Banco de Crédito del Perú (BCP) offer Bitcoin to a 5,000-client pilot. It's the first time a Peruvian bank operates directly with crypto, a notable difference from Colombia and Chile, where commercial banks keep their distance. If the pilot consolidates and the SBS extends the authorisation, Peru could leapfrog Chile and Colombia in crypto banking — paradoxically, from the most limited framework. As for Peruvian Bitcoin treasuries: none on the Lima Stock Exchange (BVL).
Institutional access from these countries
Here's the limitation common to all three Andean markets: none has an instrument equivalent to the Argentine CEDEAR that allows tax-efficient exposure to international Bitcoin treasuries (Strategy, Metaplanet, Twenty One, etc.) without leaving the local market. Nor are there spot Bitcoin ETF listings on the local Santiago, Bogotá or Lima exchanges.
The real routes for an Andean investor to access the institutional Bitcoin layer are three, all with significant operational friction: international broker accounts (Interactive Brokers, eToro, Trading 212 give access to treasury stocks and US spot ETFs, but with the friction of opening a foreign account, sending funds abroad and local taxation on foreign gains); the international segment of local brokers (some Chilean, Colombian and Peruvian brokerages offer international access, with varying catalogues and higher fees); and international ETFs via secondary markets (limited offering, higher total costs). The practical consequence: the investor operating from Chile, Colombia or Peru who wants equity Bitcoin exposure pays a significant "Andean friction" versus the Argentine or US investor. That friction explains much of why the Strategy/Metaplanet/Arcadia₿ model hasn't yet been replicated locally in these three countries.
Summary: three models, one region
The three Andean countries share geography, economic history and mutual trade dependence, but reach 2026 with very uneven crypto regulation. Chile leads the regulatory path: the Fintech Law 21,521 is the most complete framework in the region, and Open Banking in July 2026 will deepen integration between the traditional system and crypto providers. If the institutional layer appears anywhere in the Andean region, it most likely starts in Chile. Colombia formalises consistently: the operational VASP Registry and the new DIAN tax-reporting obligation make it the second most institutionalised crypto market of the three. Peru is just starting, but with a surprising move: the BCP sandbox is the most innovative piece of the three — the first time a Latin American commercial bank can offer Bitcoin directly to clients.
For SatsIntel, the Andean picture is the other half of the Latin American crypto map. Together with the Mexico and Argentina guides, this completes the regulatory reading of Hispanic America's five most relevant crypto markets. The next natural piece: when and how the first Chilean, Colombian or Peruvian Arcadia₿ or Zonda appears. A matter of time.
