Circle’s USDC is gaining popularity among corporate treasury groups who are now opting for more stablecoin-based transactions instead of wire transfers facilitated by financial institutions. Data shows that USDC now outstrips Tether (USDT) in terms of transfer volume, while overall stablecoin transactions set a new record.
The change comes as the demand for faster and cheaper dollar-based systems outside banking hours continues to rise. Leon Waidmann, Lisk’s head of research, stated that the volume of stablecoin transactions in February 2026 was $1.8 trillion.
One of the most significant changes has been the emergence of USDC, as it surpassed USDT in terms of transfer volume, a rare case after the dominance of Tether.
Waidmann also points out the change in focus towards regulated and compliant systems of digital dollars, with statistics showing that it is large institutions, not retail users, that are driving stablecoins.
At the same time, the stablecoins market as a whole has seen rapid growth. The total market capitalization has grown to $314 billion, compared to $131 billion as of January 2024, according to data from DefiLlama.
Source: DefiLlama
Reece Merrick, an executive at Ripple, stated that the number of transactions involving $33 trillion in the year 2025 was twice the amount handled by Visa.
Transaction volume increased by 72% year over year, and active users increased by 146% across 106 countries.
Business transactions across borders increased the fastest. Global business-to-business stablecoin transactions increased by 733%, totaling $226 billion.
Other growing uses that Merrick also mentioned include remittances, automated payroll systems, and protection against inflation in developing countries.
Regional demand is also growing. Unstable currencies in Turkey are driving the adoption of dollar-backed stablecoins in the Middle East and North Africa. Stablecoins are also replacing traditional remittance services in Nigeria, where $59 billion in remittances are processed annually.
In the United Arab Emirates, regulators have approved a stablecoin backed by the dirham, named DDSC, which is intended for institutional settlement and has an estimated market value of $170 billion.
The benefits to corporate financial teams were clearly illustrated when Circle Internet Group recently employed USDC and its Circle Mint platform to transfer $68 million across eight internal company entities in less than 30 minutes.
The same transactions would normally require one to three days to settle through traditional wire transfer systems used by banks.
Jeremy Allaire, Circle’s CEO, said the system processed about 90% of the company’s internal transfer-pricing settlements in a single day.
The platform runs continuously and has audit tracking and approval controls, which enable companies to continue with their current financial processes while using the blockchain-based settlement system.
Meanwhile, Coinbase is building infrastructure for the adoption of stablecoins on a bigger scale. For instance, the company has built a whole ecosystem of stablecoins through issuance, settlement via its Base Layer-2 network, and digital wallets for individuals and institutions, as indicated by its chief business officer, Shan Aggarwal.
USDC balances across Coinbase products reached $17.8 billion by the end of Q4 2024.
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A report by Bernstein analysts rated Circle’s stock as “outperform” with a potential increase of 71% to $190 compared to the current price of $111. The report cited Circle’s regulatory compliance, partnerships, liquidity, and technology as positives.
Source: Google Finance
Circle has achieved $2.7 billion in revenue in 2025, representing a 64% increase from 2024, with transaction revenue increasing the fastest at 112% year over year as USDC adoption grew.
However, Tether has also struck back to regain its position in the market through the launch of USAT, a federally regulated stablecoin with a dollar-peg ratio, which was launched in January 2026 with the aim of entering the US market.
Currently, the amount of USAT in circulation is still relatively small, amounting to just under $20 million, as shown in the DefiLlama.
source: Defillama
At the same time, prominent financial technology companies like PayPal, Stripe, and Klarna, along with a number of financial institutions, announced their plans for developing their own stablecoin services.
The next level of competition for stablecoins is expected to be in the areas of corporate treasury management, AI-based payment systems, and developing countries.
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