Tether Holdings has announced that its USDt stablecoin attained a record $187.3 billion in market capitalization during the fourth quarter of 2025. This expansion of $12.4 billion is particularly notable as it unfolded during a widespread downturn for digital assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum, triggered by an October liquidation event.
The quarterly figures reveal a story of divergent fortunes within the stablecoin sector. While USDt’s dominance widened considerably, its closest rivals stalled or retreated. Circle’s USDC saw its market cap fluctuate through the quarter before closing nearly flat. Ethena’s USDe, meanwhile, faced a steep 57% decline in its valuation.
Robust onchain metrics supported the market cap growth. Adoption reached new peaks, with an average of 24.8 million monthly active wallets now holding USDt, accounting for roughly 70% of all stablecoin addresses. The sheer scale of usage was underscored by a quarterly transfer volume of $4.4 trillion across 2.2 billion onchain transactions.
