a16z Crypto: Understand the Evolution of Stablecoins Through 9 Charts

Author: a16z crypto

Translation: Jiahui, ChainCatcher

Stablecoins have been seeking their position for years.

Initially, they were just a trading tool, a means to transfer dollars across exchanges. Later, they evolved into a savings instrument, held rather than spent. Today, data points to a new direction: stablecoins are gradually becoming core financial infrastructure.

The following nine charts reveal the factors driving this trend.

Regulation Accelerates Market Growth

For most of the development of stablecoins, regulatory uncertainty limited institutional participation. Later, the GENIUS Act brought clarity to regulation. It didn’t create this trend but played a role in accelerating it.

In the U.S., the GENIUS Act established the first federal-level framework for stablecoin issuance. This shift is clearly visible in the data: before the bill’s passage, adjusted trading volume had been rising for several consecutive quarters; after passage, growth further accelerated, reaching about $4.5 trillion in Q1 2026.

European regulation—the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA)—tells a more complex story. When the regulation fully took effect at the end of 2024, several major exchanges delisted USDT to comply, causing a surge in activity for non-dollar stablecoins, which at one point exceeded $40 billion.

Since then, trading volume has stabilized above the pre-MiCA baseline, roughly $15 billion to $25 billion per month. Regulation has created a durable market for non-dollar stablecoins that was nearly nonexistent before.

( Stablecoin Business Activity Is Growing

Perhaps the most notable structural change is in how people are actually using stablecoins.

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Looking at raw transaction counts, C2C (consumer-to-consumer) transactions far surpass all other categories: reaching 789.5 million in 2025. But the fastest-growing segment is stablecoin transactions between consumers and businesses, which doubled compared to 2024’s 124.9 million, reaching 284.6 million in 2025 (+128%).

Data from stablecoin card infrastructure highlights this trend.

Stablecoin card projects supported by Rain (including Etherfi Cash, Kast, Wallbit, etc.) have seen monthly collateral deposits grow from nearly zero in November 2024 to over $300 million per month by early 2026. While these are collateral supports for consumption rather than direct stablecoin spending, the trajectory is striking: stablecoin commercial activity is rising.

( Stablecoin Circulation Speed Is Accelerating

The turnover rate of each dollar of stablecoin supply is increasing.

Since early 2024, the circulation speed (the ratio of adjusted monthly transfer volume to circulating supply) has nearly doubled, rising from 2.6 times to 6 times. An increase in circulation speed indicates that demand for stablecoin transactions exceeds new issuance, and existing supply is being put to more active use.

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This is a true sign of a payment network—underlying currency is being actively used, not just held.

( Stablecoin Transaction Volume Reflects More Payment Activity

Excluding the parts of stablecoin transactions dominated by trading, fund flows, and exchange mechanisms, the total payments between different entities last year are estimated to be between $350 billion and $550 billion.

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By transaction volume, the enterprise-to-enterprise sector dominates stablecoin payments (not surprising given its scale). But other areas, such as direct consumer-to-consumer payments and transactions with merchants, are also rapidly expanding.

( Stablecoin Payments Are Currently Concentrated in Specific Regions

Geographically, stablecoin payment activity is uneven.

Nearly two-thirds of the volume comes from Asia, mainly Singapore, Hong Kong, and Japan.

North America accounts for about a quarter. Europe makes up roughly 13%. Latin America and Africa combined account for only a tiny fraction, less than $1 billion.

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( More Than Just Cross-Border Payments—Local Currencies Running on a Global Track

The development of non-dollar stablecoins is not limited to Europe; it is also emerging in developing markets, driven by different factors.

Brazil is a typical example. The monthly transfer volume of BRLA (a stablecoin backed by the Brazilian real) has grown from near zero in early 2023 to about $68B per month by early 2026. The adoption has been boosted by access to the PIX instant payment network.

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Although stablecoins are often described as cross-border tools, the proportion of cross-border activity has actually been declining rather than rising.

Domestic transactions (transfers within the same country/region) have increased from about half of total payments in early 2024 to nearly three-quarters by early 2026. What does this mean? Stablecoins are not only gaining ground as remittance or foreign exchange tools but are also becoming a local payment medium operating on a global infrastructure.

Putting all these factors together, a clear picture emerges—despite expectations that many held, stablecoins are not solely focused on cross-border transactions. Instead, they are becoming increasingly localized.

While the US dollar remains the core anchor currency for most stablecoins, stablecoins are by no means just dollar-pegged assets. Non-dollar variants, such as euro-backed and Brazilian real-backed local currency stablecoins, are gaining popularity.

Although P2P (C2C) stablecoin transfers vastly outnumber other payment flows in volume, more and more use cases are shifting toward daily consumption (C2B).

Quarterly data continues to provide evidence that stablecoins are evolving into a universal payment infrastructure. They are designed to be global but are increasingly becoming local in practice.

Still in early stages. But the shape of this system is gradually becoming clearer.