USDC issuer Circle has reported that the stablecoin’s circulation increased by 78% in 2024.

The uptick made USDC the fastest-growing fiat-pegged crypto asset by market capitalization in the last 12 months.

Regulatory Compliance

According to the report, the supply of USDC went from a low of $24.4 billion in early 2024 to $43.9 billion by January 1, 2025. This growth is in stark contrast to 2023, when the stablecoin shrank by 45% to $33.2 billion following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB).

The Santa Clara-based financial institution had held about $3.3 billion of Circle’s cash reserves. Its failure triggered a massive sell-off that caused USDC to briefly depeg from the U.S. dollar.

Fast-forward to the present, the virtual asset now operates across 16 blockchains and has facilitated fiat currency transfers worth more than $850 billion. Moreover, in November 2024, its monthly transaction volume broke past the $1 trillion mark, pushing its historical transaction total to more than $18 trillion.

Circle Chief Strategy Officer Dante Disparte credited USDC’s recent progress to his company’s proactive engagement with regulators. This was exemplified by its becoming the first stablecoin issuer to secure a license under the European Union’s Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) framework.

Headquartered in Boston, Circle was also one of the few crypto firms that met Canada’s stringent VRCA listing standards. Those requirements led several companies, including Kraken, Bitstamp, and Bybit, to halt operations in the country.

Tether Still Dominant

However, it has not all been smooth sailing for the organization. Toward the end of last year, Circle was reportedly forced to slash its workforce by more than 6% following what it called a routine operational assessment.

Also, despite the growth recorded in the past year, USDC still trails USDT. The number one stablecoin ended 2024 with its market cap at an eye-watering $137.5 billion. This amount represents 66% of the entire stablecoin sector, which is worth nearly $208 billion.

Furthermore, since 2021, USDT’s value has increased by more than 74%, while USDC’s has improved by a less remarkable 8.8%. Data from CoinGecko shows that Tether was capped at $78.3 billion in 2021, while the now-rebranded USD Coin stood at $42 billion.

Tether also recently announced that it is moving its operations to El Salvador and building its first physical headquarters after being licensed as a digital service provider in the country. The company, which expanded its BTC reserves by $700 million on the last day of 2024, reported net profits of $7.7 billion in the first three quarters of that year.