Against the backdrop of the depeg of the USDC stablecoin, USDT, issued by Tether, rose to a market capitalization of $74.7 billion, nearly double that of its nearest competitor.
According to Glassnode data, Tether’s dominance in the stablecoins segment rose to 58.1%, the highest level for the asset since September 2021.
Similarly, USDC’s share fell to 30%. The stablecoin peaked at 38% in the summer of 2022, when USDT lost its peg to the dollar amid the collapse of the Terra ecosystem. However, the issuer did not face issues with redeeming obligations and, in a day, bought back assets worth $600 million.
Another factor driving the popularity of the Tether coin is likely regulatory issues surrounding Binance’s BUSD, whose dominance sits at around 11%.
In February, the New York Department of Financial Services initiated an investigation into Paxos, the company that issues BUSD. The regulator said it halted the stablecoin’s issuance and ended its cooperation with Binance.
In early March, the market capitalization of the largest crypto exchange’s stablecoin fell below $10 billion for the first time since late June 2021.
Earlier, due to USDC’s depeg, the algorithmic stablecoins DAI and FRAX also lost their dollar peg.