Circle’s USDC Close in on Tether With New 5B Stablecoin Mint

Tether’s stablecoin market dominance may be threatened after its counterpart Circle minted many of its native stablecoin USDC. Markedly, Circle has minted more than 5 billion USDC on the Solana network this past week. Based on the volume of this interview, USDC is gradually closing in on Tether’s USDT. 

USDC Market Cap Hit $52 Billion

Circle kickstarted this minting spree at the beginning of this year, but the larger part was recorded this past week.

According to blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence, about 250 million USDC were minted on the Solana blockchain today. This has positively impacted its market capitalization as it has added $8 billion to this metric, which now lies above $52 billion. 

Though USDT’s market cap is still more than 100% higher than USDC’s at this writing, the former has not recorded any sizable addition recently. Tether’s USDT has a steady market cap of $139.3 billion.

The recent development suggests that there is increasing activity on the USDC network. In addition, it points to Circle’s commitment and dedication to establishing itself on the Solana blockchain. There is also a growing demand for USDC in the Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ecosystem and other applications. 

EU MiCA Regulation Fix Circle at an Advantage 

Apart from the large minted of 5 billion USDC, Circle may have an edge over Tether by being compliant with the European Union Market in Crypto Assets (MiCA) regulation. As far back as July 2024, the USDC issuer became the first stablecoin issuer to receive regulatory approval under the MiCA framework. 

Consequently, Circle received the legal right to offer a Euro Coin (EURC) while operating in compliance with the new regulations, which eventually took effect on December 30, 2024. Since then, the likes of MoonPay, Crypto.com , and Boerse Stuttgart Digital have tried to secure the MiCA license. 

Tether Hopes For Better Regulatory Framework Under Trump 

On the other hand, Tether is working towards expanding into the United States market. Paolo Ardoino, CEO of the stablecoin issuer, noted that the organization is still considering regulatory guidelines that will arise from Donald Trump’s administration. With the new executive order on crypto assets signed by the new US president, Tether may expand soon.

In the past, the firm faced intense regulatory challenges in the US. On multiple occasions, it has been accused of a lack of transparency, especially concerning its reserve claims. The new administration may take it easy on Tether, or it could be delisted if the new rules mandate a reserve.