The Stablecoin Industry Enters a Golden Era: The Development History and Future Outlook of USDT and USDC

The U.S. Senate passed the GENIUS Act with a result of 68 votes in favor and 30 against, marking the dawn of a golden age for the stablecoin industry.

Looking back, it is not a coincidence that USDT and USDC have become the "leader" and "runner-up" in the stablecoin market. According to data platform statistics, as of June 12, USDT's market capitalization is approximately 156 billion USD, with a market share of 62.1%; USDC's market capitalization is approximately 60.8 billion USD, accounting for 24.2%. Other stablecoin projects account for less than 15% cumulatively.

2019 was a key point in the competition between USDT and USDC. USDT reached a cooperation with a certain public chain ecosystem, which subsequently became the network with the largest issuance of USDT, currently around 78.2 billion USD, accounting for about 50% of the total USDT supply. The DeFi boom in 2020 injected new momentum into USDT, making it the "entry ticket" for many DeFi protocols. At the same time, USDT is widely used in payments and cross-border transactions in regions such as Southeast Asia and South America.

In July 2020, USDT became the first stablecoin project with a market value exceeding 10 billion USD, establishing its dominant position in the industry. In contrast, USDC went through a difficult period in 2019 and had to make large-scale business adjustments. It wasn't until March 2020, after the USDC platform upgrade, that it got back on track.

In June 2022, due to the collapse of a certain algorithmic stablecoin project, the market value of USDT temporarily fell to $66.9 billion, while USDC grew to $55 billion, narrowing the gap between the two to $12 billion. However, USDT quickly widened the gap thereafter.

From the perspective of team background and development direction, USDT has chosen a decentralized intermediary route, while USDC insists on a compliance route. A certain executive behind USDT is known for unconventional management methods, which may make USDT more resilient in the crypto industry. USDC, on the other hand, has always adhered to "regulation first" and established a comprehensive compliance system.

In the future, USDT may continue to expand its business scope, venturing into multiple fields such as mining and AI. USDC, on the other hand, may leverage favorable regulatory policies to make strides in areas like institutional payments and PayFi.

After more than a decade of development, stablecoins as a "peer-to-peer electronic payment system" have finally ushered in a booming opportunity. USDT and USDC, with their differentiated strategies, target the hundreds of trillions of dollars cross-border trade market and the trillion-dollar global electronic currency market, respectively. With the new regulatory framework in place, the next round of competition in the stablecoin industry has already begun.