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Stablecoin Market Cap Reached New All-Time High In December

The stablecoin market rose 1.25% to $310 billion, marking a new record after November's downturn

By CoinDesk Data
Updated Jan 16, 2026, 3:57 p.m. Published Jan 1, 2026, 3:57 p.m.
Stablecoin & CDDC Report
Stablecoin & CDDC Report

What to know:

  • The stablecoin market rebounded 1.25% to $310B, reaching a new all-time high after declining in November for the first time in over two years.
  • Stablecoin trading volumes reached $868B on centralized exchanges but trended lower month-over-month, with USDT dominating 74.8% of activity.
  • USDS overtook USDe to become the third-largest stablecoin, while USDC crossed the $50T milestone in cumulative on-chain transfer volume.

The stablecoin market has resumed its upward trajectory after its first monthly decline in 26 months. Total market capitalization rose 1.25% to $310 billion as of December 22, up from $306 billion in November. The recovery marks a new all-time high for the sector.

Tether's USDT extended its growth streak, expanding 0.56% to $184 billion in its 28th consecutive month of gains. However, the stablecoin's market dominance slipped slightly to 60.2% from 60.3%. USDC saw its market capitalization rise 1.01% to $77.0 billion, marking its seventh consecutive month of growth and reaching a new all-time high.

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The month's standout performer was Sky Protocol's USDS, which surged 11.0% to $6.51 billion, overtaking Ethena's USDe to become the third-largest stablecoin by market capitalization. This represents an 86% increase in USDS market cap since the start of the year.

USDT maintained its dominance in trading activity, accounting for 74.8% of total stablecoin volume on centralized exchanges, followed by USDC at 15.5% and FDUSD at 8.59%.

USDC crossed a major milestone in December, with cumulative transfer volume across all supported chains surpassing $50 trillion. Ethereum remains the dominant settlement layer, accounting for approximately 45% of total USDC transfer volume, though recent acceleration on Base and Solana helped push the stablecoin past the $50T mark.

Ripple's RLUSD continued its rapid expansion, with market capitalization surging 7.80% to $1.36 billion, a new all-time high. Trading volumes for RLUSD pairs reached $1.04 billion as of December 21. On December 15, Ripple announced it is testing RLUSD on Optimism, Base, Ink, and Unichain, with additional blockchains planned for 2026 pending regulatory approval.

The stablecoin market on HyperEVM also reached new heights, climbing to an all-time high of $740 million. USDC dominated the ecosystem, accounting for 57% of total stablecoin supply on HyperEVM after posting a 102% increase over the past 30 days.

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