Compiled by: Jia Huan, ChainCatcher
Stablecoins have been searching for their place for many years.
Initially, they were merely trading instruments, a means of transferring dollars across exchanges. They later evolved into savings instruments, held rather than consumed. Now, data points to a new direction: stablecoins are gradually becoming core financial infrastructure.
The following nine charts reveal the factors driving this trend.
Regulation has accelerated market growth
For much of the stablecoin era, regulatory uncertainty limited institutional participation. Later, the GENIUS Act brought regulatory clarity. It didn't create the trend, but it certainly accelerated it.
In the United States, the GENIUS Act established the first federal-level framework for stablecoin issuance. This shift is clearly visible in the data: prior to the passage of the act, adjusted transaction volume had been rising for several consecutive quarters, and the growth accelerated further after the act's passage, reaching approximately $4.5 trillion in the first quarter of 2026.
The European regulatory framework—the Crypto Asset Markets Act (MiCA)—tells a more complex story. When the act came into full effect at the end of 2024, several major exchanges delisted USDT for compliance, leading to a surge in activity in non-USD stablecoins, exceeding $40 billion at one point.
Subsequently, trading volume stabilized above pre-MiCA benchmark levels, at approximately $15 billion to $25 billion per month. Regulation created a lasting market for non-USD stablecoins that had previously been virtually nonexistent.
Stablecoin business activity is growing
Perhaps the most noteworthy structural change lies in how people actually use stablecoins.
In terms of raw transaction volume, the C2C category far surpassed all other categories, reaching 789.5 million transactions in 2025. However, stablecoin transactions between consumers and businesses saw the fastest growth, reaching 284.6 million transactions in 2025, more than doubling (+128%) from 124.9 million in 2024.
Data from stablecoin card infrastructure highlights this trend.
Monthly collateralized deposits for stablecoin card projects backed by Rain (including Etherfi Cash, Kast, Wallbit, etc.) grew from near zero in November 2024 to over $300 million per month by early 2026. While this is collateral backed by consumption rather than direct spending of stablecoins, the trajectory is remarkable: stablecoin commercial activity is on the rise.
Stablecoin circulation velocity is accelerating
The turnover rate of each dollar stablecoin supply is increasing.
Since the beginning of 2024, the velocity of circulation for stablecoins (i.e., the adjusted ratio of monthly transaction volume to circulating supply) has nearly doubled, climbing from 2.6x to 6x. This increased velocity of circulation means that demand for stablecoin transactions exceeds new issuance, and the existing supply is working harder to keep up with demand.
This is a hallmark of a true payment network—the base money is being actually used, not just held.
Stablecoin trading volume reflects more payment activity.
If we exclude transactions, fund flows, and exchange mechanisms, which account for the majority of stablecoin transactions, the total amount of payments between different entities last year is still estimated to be between $350 billion and $550 billion.
In terms of transaction volume, business-to-business (B2B) transactions dominate stablecoin payments (which is unsurprising given their size). However, other sectors, such as direct consumer-to-consumer (C2C) payments and transactions with merchants, are also expanding rapidly.
Stablecoin payments are currently concentrated in specific regions.
Geographically, stablecoin payment activity is unevenly distributed.
Nearly two-thirds of the trading volume came from Asia, mainly concentrated in Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan.
North America accounts for about a quarter. Europe accounts for about 13%. Latin America and Africa combined account for only a very small portion, less than $1 billion.
It's not just about cross-border payments, but also about local currencies running on a global track.
The development of non-dollar stablecoins is not limited to Europe; it is also emerging in emerging markets, driven by different factors.
Brazil is a prime example. BRLA (a stablecoin backed by the Brazilian real) saw its monthly transaction volume grow from near zero in early 2023 to approximately $400 million per month by early 2026. Access to the PIX instant payment network fueled its adoption.
Although stablecoins are often described as cross-border tools, the proportion of cross-border activity has actually been declining, not rising.
Domestic transactions (stablecoin transfers within the same country/region ) have grown from about half of all payments in early 2024 to nearly three-quarters in early 2026. What does this mean? Stablecoins have not only established themselves as a remittance or foreign exchange tool, but have also become a local payment medium operating on a global infrastructure.
Take all these factors together, and a clear picture emerges, though not as most people expected: many once thought stablecoins would focus entirely on cross-border transactions. Instead, they are becoming increasingly localized.
While the US dollar remains the core fiat currency pegged to the vast majority of stablecoins, stablecoins are by no means simply an export of the US dollar. Non-dollar variants, such as euro-backed and Brazilian real-backed local currency stablecoins, are becoming increasingly popular.
Although peer-to-peer (C2C) stablecoin transfers far outnumber other types of payment flows, more and more use cases are shifting towards everyday consumption (C2B).
Each quarter's data provides further evidence that stablecoins are evolving into a universal payment infrastructure. They are designed to be global, but are becoming increasingly localized in practice.
It is still in its early stages. However, the form of this system is gradually becoming clearer.
