Stablecoin

USDC has overtaken USDT in adjusted transaction volume for the first time since 2019, reaching about $2.2 trillion versus USDT’s $1.3 trillion and accounting for 64% of flows between the two. Circle also minted an additional $2 billion USDC on Solana in 2026, where transactions are reported to be nearly 30 times higher than on Ethereum, fueling debate over whether Solana could gain a structural edge and technically outperform ETH.

The US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit has declined to hear Custodia Bank’s final appeal over its denied Federal Reserve master account, ending the crypto-focused bank’s five-year legal effort to gain direct access to the central bank’s payment system. Judges upheld the view that the Federal Reserve has discretion over which institutions can obtain master accounts, even as other fintech and crypto firms, including Kraken and Revolut, pursue their own routes to US banking access. The ruling drew a strong dissent from Judge Timothy Tymkovich, who warned that refusal of a master account can be “indispensable” and potentially fatal for a bank.

The United States Attorney's Office has filed a civil forfeiture action to seize about USDT 3.4 million in Tether tied to a crypto investment scam conducted on Ethereum. Authorities say the scheme targeted at least four victims in Massachusetts, Utah and South Carolina, with the funds later converted into USDT and confiscated in February and March 2025.

In an interview with Morgan Stanley recorded on January 30 and released Friday, billionaire investor Stanley Druckenmiller said blockchain-based stablecoins could underpin the global payments system within 10 to 15 years. He argued that tokenized payment rails offer faster and cheaper settlement than traditional systems, even as he remains skeptical of Bitcoin as a long-term store of value and continues to favor gold. Druckenmiller's comments come as stablecoin transaction volumes reach tens of trillions of dollars and new legislation such as the GENIUS Act encourages financial firms to test blockchain settlement.

In February 2026, Solana processed $650 billion in adjusted stablecoin transaction volume, more than twice its October 2025 peak and leading all blockchains by monthly share. Grayscale's March 4, 2026 research note links this growth to a shift from memecoin trading toward payments, DeFi, and tokenization, supported by upcoming upgrades like Firedancer and Alpenglow. The same analysis highlights USDC's rising dominance in transfer volume over USDT, underscoring institutional demand for compliant stablecoin rails.

On 14 March 2026, the U.S. Treasury's OFAC imposed sanctions on six people and two companies accused of using remote IT jobs to channel roughly $800 million in 2024 to North Korea's weapons programs. The network allegedly relied on stolen identities, deepfake-enhanced job interviews, and crypto conversions, while global illicit crypto flows climbed to an estimated $154–$158 billion in 2025 with sanctions evasion, large-scale hacks, and industrialized fraud on the rise.

KRAK Acquisition Corp., a SPAC associated with crypto exchange Kraken, raised about $345 million in an IPO in January and is now evaluating crypto-native acquisition targets valued between $2 billion and $10 billion. The firm is focused on stablecoins, DeFi, tokenization, and digital payment infrastructure, aiming to help mid-sized and emerging companies access public markets while deepening Kraken's strategic ties across the digital asset ecosystem.

South Korea’s push to prioritize KRW-denominated stablecoins over U.S. dollar-based options has drawn opposing views from market participants. Analyst Jinsol Bok argues KRW stablecoins could actually intensify capital outflows and see limited demand given existing local yield-bearing digital payment services, while DWF Ventures believes South Korea’s large, tech-savvy crypto user base and the Kimchi Premium could support strong adoption. The Financial Services Commission is expected to finalize corporate crypto rules that will shape how KRW stablecoins compete with USDT and USDC in the country.

Mastercard has included Polygon's POL network in its Crypto Partner Program, linking the Layer 2 chain's on-chain infrastructure with global payment flows. While Polygon processes over a trillion dollars in stablecoin transactions annually and its stablecoin market cap on the network has climbed above $3.36 billion, the POL token is trading below $0.10, far from its 2024 levels.

The crypto market has recovered 2.34%, lifting total capitalization to $2.43 trillion while approaching key resistance. Stablecoin supply has climbed to a record $315.37 billion after $2.53 billion was minted in seven days, indicating ample liquidity even as thin weekend trading and volatility still pose downside risks.