Stablecoins Break Records as GENIUS Act and Institutional Interest Push Market Past $280B

Stablecoins have gone from niche plumbing for crypto traders to front-page financial news this year, and the numbers are starting to show it. Data compiled by on-chain analytics firms and market trackers put the combined stablecoin market capitalization in the high-$200 billion today, with total supply figures clustering around $285–$290 billion as demand for dollar-pegged and yield-bearing tokens picks up pace. That marks a dramatic recovery and growth trend that accelerated in late 2023 and has continued through 2025.

“Stablecoins have surged since late 2023, and momentum is accelerating as mainstream interest grows. The GENIUS Act is a key catalyst, giving banks and other institutions clearer rules and a regulated on-ramp into the crypto market,” Sentora, the analytics shop formerly known as IntoTheBlock, wrote on X today alongside a market-cap chart showing the sector approaching roughly $286 billion.

Why the Sudden Pop?

The single biggest policy development is the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act, which was signed into law in mid-July and establishes a federal framework for payment stablecoins. The law sets licensing standards, reserve and disclosure requirements, and a path for state issuers to migrate to federal oversight, removing a major source of regulatory uncertainty that has long kept some institutional players on the sidelines. Regulators have also moved quickly: Treasury and other agencies are already taking steps to implement portions of the new framework.

The result is a “permissioned” bridge between traditional finance and crypto rails. Banks and large custodians now have clearer rules about custodying reserves, issuing tokenized deposits and interacting with on-chain payments, a change that many market participants say is unlocking corporate treasuries, payment providers and custodial flows into stablecoins. Analysts point to the GENIUS Act as a major reason why large liquid stablecoins like Tether (USDT) and Circle’s USD Coin (USDC) have seen renewed issuance and use.

Who’s in Charge of the Market?

Tether’s USDT remains the dominant player by a wide margin, with circulating supply and market–cap figures in the neighborhood of $165–$170 billion; USDC sits a distant second at roughly $70–$73 billion. Together, those two tokens account for the lion’s share of total market capitalization and stablecoin transaction volume on exchanges and DeFi protocols.

Institutional interest and clearer rules are positive for adoption, but they don’t erase old risks. The GENIUS Act requires issuers to disclose reserve compositions and backstop their tokens with liquid assets, a direct response to past reserve-transparency concerns. Even so, market watchers warn that faster growth and tighter banking linkages could create new systemic touchpoints between crypto and the banking system if a large issuer faces redemption pressure. Policymakers, meanwhile, are emphasizing consumer protections and auditability as they implement the law.

The surge in stablecoins has coincided with a broader bullish stretch in macro and crypto markets. Bitcoin is trading in the low six-figures (around $112k at press time), a steady base from which many investors say stablecoins increasingly act as the rails for on-ramping into spot and derivative trades. That dynamic, large pools of dollar-pegged liquidity sitting on exchanges and in protocols, tends to lower friction and speed execution for traders while offering firms a cash-like instrument for yield strategies.

Stablecoins are no longer an obscure crypto utility; they’re now a growing, regulated slice of digital finance that sits at the intersection of payments, trading and custody. With the GENIUS Act removing a major source of uncertainty and infrastructure upgrades making institutional use easier, the market’s expansion looks set to continue. But for investors and policymakers alike, growth will need to be accompanied by prudence: audits, high-quality reserves and clear operational safeguards will be the price of mainstream trust.