Originally published on: November 26, 2024
In a surprising turn of events, Ethereum has reclaimed its dominance over Tron as the top blockchain for the Tether stablecoin after a significant increase in USDT supply on Ethereum in the past week. Data from DefiLlama reveals that there is now a staggering $60.3 billion worth of TetherUSDT on Ethereum, surpassing Tron’s $58.1 billion.
This shift marks the first time Ethereum has outstripped Tron since August 2022, with Ethereum and Tron holding 45.4% and 43.7% shares of USDT dominance, respectively. The rise in USDT supply, currently at an all-time high of $132.9 billion, signals a bullish trend as stablecoins play a crucial role in facilitating trading liquidity and capital flow in the cryptocurrency market.
Ethereum’s position as the preferred chain for tokenizing real-world assets backed by the US dollar has bolstered its lead, while Tron’s low fees and faster processing speed attracted users in high-inflation regions to hold stablecoins like USDT. Recent data shows Tether minted $2 billion USDT on Ethereum compared to $1 billion on Tron, further solidifying Ethereum’s lead.
Beyond Ethereum and Tron, other blockchains like BNB Chain, Arbitrum, and Avalanche are also vying for a share of the stablecoin market, with holdings ranging from $1.31 billion to $4.58 billion. Tether’s USDT remains the largest stablecoin globally with a market cap of $132.3 billion, followed by USD CoinUSDC at $39 billion.
As Tether reaches a staggering 350 million users globally, equivalent to 4.2% of the world’s population, the stablecoin market continues to expand. Ethereum also leads in USDC dominance, with $26.3 billion of USDC’s market cap, while Tron’s position in this market weakened after Circle and Binance withdrew support for USDC on Tron earlier this year.
This shift in USDT dominance highlights the dynamic nature of the cryptocurrency market and the evolving landscape of stablecoin usage across different blockchain networks. Keep an eye on these developments to stay ahead in the digital asset space. Subscribe to our Markets Outlook newsletter for more insights and analysis on emerging trends.