New Era of the Digital Asset Market: Stablecoin Ecosystem Welcomes Explosive Rise

In 2025, the digital asset market reached an important milestone when a well-known stablecoin issuance company successfully went public on the New York Stock Exchange, becoming one of the first publicly listed financial technology companies focused on stablecoin business. This marks the official entry of the US dollar stablecoin ecosystem into the public capital market, opening up new blue ocean opportunities in the digital asset field.

Stablecoins, as a bridge connecting traditional fiat currencies and the world of digital currencies, are becoming the core battleground for capital markets and fintech companies due to their price stability, efficient low-cost cross-border payments, and deep support for innovative scenarios such as DeFi. Against the backdrop of the rapid development of the global digital economy, the stablecoin ecosystem is experiencing explosive growth. Whether it is the influx of capital or the gradual improvement of policy regulation, it highlights the key role of stablecoins in the future global payment system, cross-border settlement, and asset management.

The Background and Value of the Rise of Stablecoins

Stablecoins, as digital assets anchored to the value of traditional fiat currencies, have rapidly emerged in recent years, becoming an important part of the cryptocurrency market. Unlike mainstream digital currencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, which are subject to high volatility, stablecoins achieve price stability through a 1:1 peg to fiat currencies like the US dollar, significantly reducing the risks associated with digital asset trading. Leveraging blockchain technology, stablecoins not only accelerate the efficiency of cross-border transfers and payments but also provide robust infrastructure support for various scenarios such as DeFi, digital asset exchanges, and global merchant payments.

The core advantages of stablecoins are reflected in three aspects:

1. Price stability, avoiding volatility risks: Stablecoins are anchored to fiat currency values, ensuring the stability of transaction and settlement amounts, significantly reducing transaction risks.

2. Cross-border transfers are fast and cost-effective: Based on blockchain technology, funds are available globally in a matter of minutes, far lower than the time and fees associated with traditional bank cross-border remittances.

3. Support for diversified financial applications: Direct access to innovative scenarios such as DeFi lending, asset exchange, and digital goods payments greatly expands the usage boundaries of digital assets.

These advantages are difficult to achieve with traditional fiat currency, greatly enhancing the convenience and efficiency of digital asset trading.

Overview of Major US Dollar Stablecoin Projects

| stablecoin | Issuer | Total Market Value (as of June 2025) | Reserve Structure | Compliance Attributes | |-------|-------|---------------------|---------|---------| | USDT | A certain offshore registered company | Approximately $155.6 billion | US Treasuries, cash, repos, etc. | Partially transparent, previously penalized | | USDC | A US company | Approximately $61.47 billion | Cash + short-term US Treasury bonds, clear audit | Fully compliant, regulatory cooperation partner | | FDUSD | A Hong Kong company | Approximately 1.481 billion USD | Bank deposits + short-term securities | Hong Kong trust framework regulation | | PYUSD | A certain payment giant | Approximately $947 million | Third-party custody, primarily US Treasuries | Subject to New York financial regulation | | USDe | A certain Singapore company | Approximately $5.6 billion | No cash, synthetic structure | No traditional collateral | | USD1 | A political team | About $2.2 billion | Fiat storage system | Third-party regulation |

Stablecoin Underlying Logic

The explosive rise of the stablecoin market can be attributed to three core driving factors: regulatory vacuum, interest rate spread, and national competition.

1. Regulatory vacuum: from barbaric growth to gradual regulation

In the past, the issuance and circulation of stablecoins lacked clear global regulatory standards, creating a "regulatory vacuum." This lowered the barriers to entry, attracting a large amount of capital and projects to enter quickly, but it also brought potential systemic risks. As countries begin to introduce relevant regulations, such as the upcoming "Stablecoin Regulation" in Hong Kong, it brings institutional norms and protections to the market, promoting the industry towards compliance and maturity.

2. Interest rate spread: "Profit gold mine" in the eyes of capital

The issuer of stablecoins manages the fiat currency funds exchanged by users and invests them in low-risk short-term government bonds, pledges cryptocurrencies, or employs various strategies such as short futures to achieve returns far exceeding bank deposit rates. Some projects have even achieved annualized returns of over 20% through innovative strategies, making them highly attractive in the market. The high returns attract funds to flow in rapidly, creating a capital accumulation effect that drives the rapid expansion of the stablecoin scale.

3. National Game: Currency Hegemony and the New Battlefield of Digital Economy

Stablecoins are not only financial innovation tools but also the focal point of international currency competition and digital sovereignty. A stablecoin project supported by a certain political team aims to create the "Digital Dollar Reconstruction Plan"; Hong Kong is actively building a Hong Kong dollar stablecoin ecosystem to compete for the forefront of fintech in Asia; many countries in Europe, America, and Asia are striving to maintain monetary influence in the digital age through regulations and central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilots. Stablecoins have become a new battleground for countries around digital currency sovereignty and the global payment system.

4. The use cases are continuously expanding, gradually approaching the functions of fiat currency.

The functionality of stablecoins continues to expand, evolving from an initial tool for internal transfers within the coin circle to a diverse array of applications including global trading payments, DeFi lending and yield, asset hedging tools, and digital goods payments. This trend towards diversification is gradually transforming stablecoins from "coin circle tools" to "digital fiat currencies," driving a surge in market scale and capital attention.

Global Digital Currency Landscape Transformation

From state-led initiatives and pilot projects by commercial banks to the participation of tech giants and on-chain native projects, stablecoins are transforming from a niche tool in the coin circle to a key entry point for the next generation of global payment infrastructure. This wave of stablecoins is, in fact, a struggle among countries over "monetary hegemony in the digital age."

In May 2025, Hong Kong passed the "Stablecoin Regulation Draft," which will be officially implemented in August of the same year, becoming the first jurisdiction in the world to establish a comprehensive regulatory framework for fiat-backed stablecoins. This initiative is not only about passive regulation but also driven by the strategic consideration of proactively seizing the "next-generation payment clearing center" position.

The strategic intent behind Hong Kong's introduction of the "Stablecoin Regulation" includes:

1. Adapt to the development trend of the global cryptocurrency payment system.
2. Ensure the internationalization of the Hong Kong dollar at the level of digital sovereignty.
3. Build stablecoins as a "bridge" and "medium" between on-chain applications and real-world assets.

Hong Kong adopts a dual-track approach: the digital Hong Kong dollar is led by the Monetary Authority, focusing on settlement within the CBDC system and pilot programs by financial institutions; the Hong Kong dollar stablecoin is market-led, serving as a supplement or even substitute in applications on open chains, overseas payments, and cross-border settlements. This allows Hong Kong to hold two "issuance rights" in digital finance: official credit and commercial efficiency.

In the global monetary game of the "Bretton Woods 3.0" era, stablecoins have become the technological carrier and symbol of influence for the next sovereign tool. The United States is anchoring certain well-known stablecoins to compete for clearing rights in the digital age; Europe and Japan are promoting independent strategies for the digitalization of their currencies through relevant regulations; while Hong Kong has carved out an independent path of "market-driven, institutional protection" with a flexible and forward-looking regulatory framework and a highly open market mechanism.

In the future, when stablecoins become the infrastructure for cross-border payments, and when blockchain redefines clearing networks and asset representation, those who can master the pricing power, access rights, and clearing authority of this system will gain an advantage in the new round of international financial order. Stablecoins are not only a revolutionary form of currency but also a deep game of digital sovereignty, financial order, and geopolitical discourse power. Next, more cities and more countries will join this yet-to-be-named digital financial war.