Stablecoins

A stablecoin is a cryptocurrency intended to track the value of a stable asset, almost always the dollar. It exists to solve a practical problem: leaving a volatile position without converting to conventional money and exiting the system entirely.

The substantive difference between stablecoins is what backs them. Some hold dollars and government bonds in a bank account, some are over-collateralised with other crypto, and some are algorithmic models attempting to hold a peg through supply mechanics. All three look identical on a trading screen and are not remotely alike in risk.

The word "stable" describes an intention rather than a promise. Stablecoins have broken their pegs before, sometimes briefly and sometimes permanently, and the most severe cases were precisely the models holding no real asset behind them.

Stablecoins — the list

The 6 coins listed here moved -0.00% on average today. Dai led at 0.01% and First Digital USD lagged at -0.01%. Combined market capitalisation for the group is about $278.7B.

What the data shows about this group

The group is concentrated: Tether alone accounts for 65.95% of the combined market capitalisation of the 6 coins listed. That means an index of the whole category would move mostly on one coin, and that spreading across several names here diversifies less than it appears.

Measured against their all-time highs, the 6 coins here sit an average of 11.38% below. Closest to its high is Ethena USDe at 3.32%, furthest is Tether at 24.26%. A coin down 24.26% needs a 32.03% gain merely to return to that high — arithmetic worth doing before assuming a deep decline is automatically an opportunity.

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This is not financial advice.

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Last updated: 2026-09-27