For the first time, the total supply of the USDC stablecoin on the Ethereum blockchain has exceeded that of competitor Tether (USDT).
According to Etherscan, the total quantity of USDC on Ethereum is now 39.92 billion, while the entire supply of USDT on the blockchain is 39.82 billion.
The fact that USDC’s supply outnumbers USDT’s on Ethereum is noteworthy, as the blockchain continues to be a primary source of growth for both stablecoins. USDC and USDT are now accessible on a number of other blockchains, including Solana and Algorand.
USDC’s recent rise has been fueled in part by its growing use in the decentralised finance (DeFi) industry. Stablecoins are used for decentralised exchange trading and a variety of other functions inside DeFi protocols.
USDC’s rise was also fueled by recent big market movements, a Circle spokeswoman told The Block. “Whether digital asset markets are trending upward or downward, both circumstances often result in higher demand for USDC – particularly during big market changes,” the representative said.
When markets rise, greater investor interest creates a demand for USDC as a means of integrating fiat money into cryptocurrency trading platforms. On the contrary, when markets decline, more traders sell volatile assets into stablecoins such as USDC, the spokesman said.
USDT is distinct from its rivals, who depend heavily on DeFi systems to augment their supply, according to Tether CTO Paolo Ardoino. The demand for USDT is mostly driven by users of centralised exchanges and institutions, he said.
However, as a result of the current pessimistic crypto market attitude, USDT demand from institutions has fallen, Ardoino said, while demand from ordinary investors in Turkey and other Latin American nations has increased.
In the grand scheme of things, USDT’s total supply across blockchains remains to be more than USDC’s. The former has a current total supply of about 82 billion, while the latter has a total supply of roughly 45 billion.
The supply of USDC has been steadily expanding over the last few months, but the supply of USDT has been relatively stable. Ardoino said that a “suitable quantity” of USDT is in circulation.
Recently, Tether has been progressively suspending money. Earlier this week, the stablecoin issuer blacklisted three Ethereum addresses that held USDT valued more than $160 million.
Regarding the freeze, Ardoino said, “Tether is assisting law enforcement by putting a temporary freeze to enable the investigation to progress.”
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