For the first time ever, the stablecoin market cap has exceeded $300 billion, marking a pivotal moment in the swift expansion of financial acceptance.
Summary
- The stablecoin market cap has surpassed the $300 billion threshold for the first time, primarily driven by Tether’s USDT.
- While USD-backed tokens hold the majority, new euro- and local currency-pegged tokens are starting to appear in Europe and Asia in response to changing regulatory landscapes.
Based on data from DeFi Llama, the global stablecoin market cap has crossed $300 billion within a single day. As of October 3, it is estimated at around $301.59 billion.
This increase is driven by the significant rise of USD-pegged tokens and widespread adoption globally, particularly among traditional banking institutions and amid evolving government regulations.
Tether’s USDT remains the largest player in this surge, commanding about 58.44% of the market. The on-chain analytics site indicates that Tether holds a market cap of $176.24 billion, with a slight increase of 0.39% over the past 24 hours and 1.54% over the past week.
Following Tether is Circle, the second largest issuer, with its USD Coin (USDC) having a market cap of $74 billion. Ethena’s USDe (USDE) ranks third with a market cap of $14.81 billion.
In terms of network, Ethereum (ETH) hosts the largest amount on-chain, with approximately $171.2 billion in circulation, followed by Tron (TRX), which has about $76.7 billion. Other chains collectively hold under $13 billion of fiat-pegged tokens in circulation.
Stablecoin domination hits new global peak
According to data from RWA.xyz, the monthly transaction volume for stablecoins has reached $3.27 trillion. Although this number has decreased by 7.59% compared to the previous month, it was sufficient to elevate the market value beyond $300 billion. Currently, there are 27 million active addresses engaging in stablecoin transactions.
While most tokens are pegged to the USD, several firms are pursuing licenses to launch their own tokens pegged to alternative currencies, aiming to challenge the dominance of USD in the market.
An emerging category of fiat-pegged tokens includes euro-backed stablecoins, as nine European banks have collaborated to create a venture that will offer euro-pegged tokens compliant with the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Asset regulation (MiCA).
However, euro stablecoins must accelerate their growth to compete effectively with USD-pegged tokens. Data from CoinMarketCap reveals that EUR tokens constitute only about $644 million of the overall global market cap of more than $300 billion, a relatively small figure compared to the USD token’s $306 billion cap.
Recently, Singapore outpaced Hong Kong in launching a local currency-pegged stablecoin, the XSGD. This token was launched on Coinbase in September 2025 after receiving approval from the Monetary Authority of Singapore, ensuring it conforms to the nation’s upcoming stablecoin regulations.
Despite having a functioning regulatory framework, Hong Kong authorities have not yet granted any issuer licenses and announced that no licenses will be issued this year. The interest from firms seeking to issue their own fiat-backed digital assets continues to grow, including many from China looking to launch yuan-backed tokens.
