| What to Know: – USDC surpassed USDT in adjusted on-chain volume despite smaller market capitalization. – Regulatory clarity and transparent reserves drive institutions toward compliance-friendly USDC. – USDC’s adjusted monthly transfers hit $1.26T, signaling sustained institutional settlement. |
Based on data from Visa Onchain/Allium, USD Coin (USDC) has overtaken Tether (USDT) in adjusted on-chain transfer volume year to date, even though USDT retains a larger market capitalization. Adjusted volume removes noisy flows such as bots and self-swaps to better reflect settlement, treasury, and cross-border activity.
According to JPMorgan analysts, regulatory clarity, including the EU’s MiCA stablecoin regulation, and stronger reserve transparency are steering institutions toward USDC. They also noted a divergence in market-cap growth, with USDC up about 72% year to date versus roughly 32% for USDT, consistent with a compliance-led tilt in usage.
As reported by Tekedia, total stablecoin transfer volume reached roughly $1.8 trillion in February 2026, with USDC near $1.26 trillion and USDT around $514 billion. The figures indicate the shift is visible at monthly scale, not just in year-to-date aggregates.
USDC vs USDT adjusted on-chain volume highlights transaction velocity over sheer supply, pointing to payments, cross-border settlement, and corporate treasury as key drivers. Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire has linked USDC’s growth to demand from money-movement and treasury use cases, aligning with institutional compliance priorities.
Recent monthly reads point in the same direction. “USDC just processed $1.2 trillion in adjusted volume in a single month … the second consecutive month USDC outpaced USDT … that’s a regime change,” said Graham Cooke, an analyst focused on on-chain datasets.
Higher adjusted volume does not necessarily imply an imminent market-cap flip, and timelines remain uncertain. What to watch next includes ongoing MiCA implementation, banking connectivity and fiat ramps, and the pace of corporate payments adoption.
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