The digital asset market is experiencing a significant resurgence. According to the latest data from the analytics platform Dune, the total transaction volume of stablecoins surpassed $10.5 trillion in January—a peak the industry hasn’t seen since April 2022.
February is also maintaining high momentum: within the partial month, transaction volumes have already reached $7.8 trillion, confirming a steady trend toward the active use of “stable” digital assets.
Battle of the Titans: USDC vs. USDT
An interesting shift has occurred in the power dynamics between the major players. Despite Tether (USDT) dominating in terms of market capitalization, USDC unexpectedly took the lead in actual transaction volume in January.
Transaction Volume Distribution (January):
| Asset | Transaction Volume | Market Share (by Volume) |
| USDC (Circle) | $8.3 Trillion | ~79% |
| USDT (Tether) | $1.7 Trillion | ~16% |
| DAI (MakerDAO) | $138 Billion | ~1.3% |
While USDC leads in turnover, USDT remains the largest stablecoin by market cap ($183.5 billion), holding over 59% of the entire sector, which is valued at $311 billion.
Base — The New Infrastructure Favorite
A change in leadership also occurred at the infrastructure level. The Layer 2 (L2) solution Base showed phenomenal activity, processing $5.9 trillion in transfers in January. This allowed it to surpass established giants:
- Ethereum: $2.5 Trillion
- Tron: $691 Billion
The primary driver for this growth was Decentralized Exchanges (DEXs). The vast majority of stablecoin operations ($5.9 trillion) were concentrated in liquidity pools on DEXs, while Centralized Exchanges (CEXs) accounted for only $612 billion in volume.
Tether’s Expansion: Strategic Investments
Market leader Tether continues to aggressively diversify its business. In late February, the company announced a $200 million acquisition of a stake in the online marketplace Whop. This deal aims to integrate a specialized wallet development kit for USDT and USAT payments.
Additionally, Tether is expanding its influence in the DeFi sector with strategic investments in:
- LayerZero Labs — a developer of interoperability protocols for cross-chain communication.
- Dreamcash — an application based on the Hyperliquid ecosystem.
Key Takeaway: The stablecoin market has evolved beyond being a “safe haven” for traders. Today, it serves as a massive settlement infrastructure dominated by L2 solutions and decentralized protocols, with transaction volumes now measured in the tens of trillions.
