Two giants dominate the stablecoin market: Tether and USDC, together accounting for about 90% of the sector’s value. USDC may be smaller than Tether in terms of size, but it packs a big punch. The global stablecoin market grew 50% in 2025, with Tether (USDT) and USDC continuing to lead the industry. USDC has a regulatory edge since it is backed by Circle Internet Group, a publicly traded U.S. corporation, while Tether is backed by Tether Limited and has a different regulatory footprint.
With the new U.S. stablecoins act, regulatory compliance has become vitally important, and large financial institutions are likely to favor USDC over Tether. Admittedly, Tether is still twice as big as USDC in market cap and remains the favorite stablecoin outside the U.S. for its liquidity; for active, short-term traders, Tether may be the better buy. For example, if you’re an active PayPal user, consider the new PayPal stablecoin, now with a $3.6 billion market cap, and Shopify has integrated USDC for online purchases via a partnership with Coinbase Global, illustrating growing use cases for USDC. For investors seeking yield, stablecoins offer annual yields typically ranging from 3.5% to 5.25% on some platforms, and up to 15% in DeFi, albeit with higher risk.
Overall, dollar-for-dollar, USDC is presented as the best stablecoin to buy right now due to liquidity, yield opportunities, and broader checkout adoption. Regulation and compliance considerations are shaping adoption, and larger financial institutions are expected to favor USDC; Tether still holds greater scale overall and remains a key liquidity anchor for many non-U.S. markets and short-term trading.
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