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 has accelerated market growth

For most of the development of stablecoins, regulatory uncertainty limited institutional participation. Later, the GENIUS Act brought clarity to regulation. It did not create this trend but played a role in accelerating its expansion.

In the United States, the GENIUS Act established the first federal-level framework for stablecoin issuance. This shift is clearly visible in the data: before the bill passed, 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) framework—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 temporarily exceeded $40 billion.

Since then, trading volume has stabilized above the pre-MiCA baseline, averaging about $15 billion to $25 billion per month. Regulation has created a persistent 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.

Looking at raw transaction counts, the C2C category far exceeds all others: reaching 789.5 million transactions in 2025. Consumer-to-business stablecoin transactions are growing the fastest, doubling from 124.9 million in 2024 to 284.6 million in 2025 (+128%).

Data from stablecoin card infrastructure highlights this trend.

Monthly collateral deposits for stablecoin card projects supported by Rain (including Etherfi Cash, Kast, Wallbit, etc.) grew from nearly zero in November 2024 to over $300 million per month by early 2026. While these are collateral supporting consumer transactions rather than direct stablecoin consumption, the trajectory is very striking: stablecoin commercial activity is on the rise.

) Stablecoin circulation speed is accelerating

The turnover frequency 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. The increase in circulation speed indicates that demand for stablecoin transactions exceeds new issuance, and the existing supply is working harder.

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

Stablecoin transaction volume reflects more payment activity

If we exclude 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.

Based on 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 expanding rapidly.

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 a tiny fraction, less than $1 billion.

Not just cross-border payments, but 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 BRLA stablecoin (backed by the Brazilian real) has grown from nearly zero in early 2023 to about $45k per month by early 2026. The adoption has been boosted by access to the PIX instant payment network.

Although stablecoins are often described as cross-border tools, the proportion of cross-border activity has actually been declining, not increasing.

Domestic transactions (transfers within the same country/region) have grown 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—contrary to many expectations: many believed stablecoins would focus entirely 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. 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 everyday 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.

It is still early days. But the shape of this system is gradually becoming clearer.