Stablecoin List October 2026: Top Stablecoins Compared

A stablecoin is a crypto token whose value is pegged to a fixed reference, usually the US dollar or the euro. One USDC is meant to be worth one dollar at all times, one EURC one euro. Stablecoins are the bridge between bank accounts and blockchains: traders park sale proceeds in them, and most money sent over a blockchain moves as a stablecoin.

The stablecoin market is large and highly concentrated. On 2 October 2026 DefiLlama tracks 429 stablecoins with a combined market cap of $314.5bn. USDT alone accounts for 58.5% of that, USDC for 23.5%. All euro-pegged stablecoins together reach only $813m, or 0.26% of the market. This list compares the top stablecoins by issuer, backing, supply and, for readers in Europe, the question that matters most: is the coin authorised under MiCA?

Stablecoin list: the top stablecoins compared

The seven largest dollar stablecoins and the three most relevant euro stablecoins, sorted by circulating supply. The MiCA column shows whether the issuer is authorised in the EU as an e-money token issuer and in which country.

Circulating supply in US dollar terms according to DefiLlama, retrieved on 2 October 2026 at 01:40 UTC; the EURC token count comes from Circle's API at the same time. Backing type as classified by DefiLlama. MiCA status according to the ESMA register of e-money token issuers, as of 30 September 2026. Chains: number of blockchains on which DefiLlama tracks the coin.

What are the top 5 stablecoins?

By market cap, the top 5 stablecoins on 2 October 2026 are USDT ($184.0bn), USDC ($74.1bn), USDS ($6.7bn), Ethena's USDe ($4.9bn) and DAI ($4.8bn). The two leaders alone hold 82.0% of the stablecoin market; everything else shares the remaining 18%. That concentration matters: liquidity, trading pairs and integrations follow market cap, so a small stablecoin can be harder to sell close to one dollar in turbulent market conditions.

Not everything DefiLlama counts as a stablecoin is a payment token. Tokenized money market products such as Circle's USYC ($2.4bn), BlackRock's BUIDL ($2.2bn) and Ondo's USDY ($2.2bn) also appear in the stablecoin market cap. They pass interest from US treasury bills on to holders, which is why some of them trade above one dollar, and they typically come with investor restrictions. This page focuses on stablecoins meant to hold a stable value of exactly one dollar or one euro.

Peg check: what the top stablecoins actually traded at

A stablecoin is only as good as its peg. The table shows the market price of the largest dollar stablecoins at the time of our data retrieval and how far it deviated from one dollar. Deviations of a few basis points are normal trading noise; a stablecoin that drifts by 100 basis points (one cent) or more is under stress.

Prices according to DefiLlama, retrieved on 2 October 2026 at 01:40 UTC. One basis point is 0.01%.

The top stablecoins one by one

1. Tether (USDT)

USDT is by far the largest stablecoin with $184.0bn in circulation across 130 blockchains. It is issued by Tether, which publishes its reserves on its transparency page. Tether has no MiCA authorisation in the EU, which is why regulated providers have dropped USDT, most recently Revolut with a forced conversion on 31 August 2026. What the audit opinion on Tether's reserves does and does not prove is covered in our analysis of the Tether audit by KPMG.

2. USD Coin (USDC)

USDC from Circle ranks second with $74.1bn and is the largest dollar stablecoin with MiCA authorisation. Its EU issuer is Circle Internet Financial Europe SAS, supervised by the French ACPR; its white paper has been notified in the ESMA register since 1 July 2024. Circle discloses the reserves on its transparency page. What changes for holders after the strategic deal with Binance is covered in our piece on the Binance and Circle USDC deal.

3. Sky Dollar (USDS) and DAI

DAI is the best-known stablecoin without a company behind it. It is created by a protocol formerly called MakerDAO and now known as Sky: users lock crypto assets as collateral and mint DAI against them. USDS is the successor token from the same protocol and offers a savings rate through the protocol. DefiLlama tracks $6.7bn USDS and $4.8bn DAI. Because there is no authorised issuer, neither appears in the MiCA register.

4. Ethena USDe

USDe from Ethena is a synthetic dollar with $4.9bn in circulation. It is not backed by bank deposits but by crypto collateral whose price risk is offset with short positions in derivatives markets. That makes USDe a different product from USDC or USDT: its stability depends on those hedges and on the exchanges where they are held. USDe has no entry in the ESMA register.

5. World Liberty Financial USD (USD1)

USD1 is the dollar stablecoin of World Liberty Financial, the crypto project associated with the family of US President Donald Trump. It grew to $4.4bn in circulation and is classified by DefiLlama as fiat-backed. There is no MiCA white paper for USD1 in the ESMA register.

6. Global Dollar (USDG)

USDG is the dollar stablecoin that Paxos issues in the EU through Paxos Issuance Europe in Finland, supervised by FIN-FSA and listed in the ESMA register. With $3.1bn in circulation it is the second largest MiCA-authorised dollar stablecoin after USDC.

7. PayPal USD (PYUSD)

PYUSD is PayPal's stablecoin. According to Paxos it is issued by Paxos Trust Company and backed by US dollar deposits, US Treasuries and cash equivalents. $2.9bn is in circulation, most of it on Ethereum and Solana. There is no EU white paper for PYUSD in the ESMA register.

8. Ripple USD (RLUSD)

RLUSD is Ripple's stablecoin and runs on the XRP Ledger and Ethereum, split almost evenly between the two. Ripple names the New York Department of Financial Services and the Dubai Financial Services Authority as its supervisors (Ripple). With $2.5bn in circulation RLUSD has grown quickly, but it has no MiCA authorisation.

9. First Digital USD (FDUSD)

FDUSD is issued by First Digital in Hong Kong and became popular as a trading pair on Asian exchanges. With $325m in circulation it is now far smaller than the leaders. FDUSD has no entry in the ESMA register.

10. EURC: the largest euro stablecoin

EURC is Circle's euro-pegged stablecoin. According to Circle, about 418.3 million EURC are in circulation on 2 October 2026, worth $470m. That makes EURC the largest euro stablecoin, but it is small next to USDC. Authorisation and supervisor are the same as for USDC.

11. EUR CoinVertible (EURCV)

EURCV is issued by Société Générale-Forge, the digital asset arm of the French bank, and is authorised in France. $185m is in circulation, making it the second largest euro stablecoin.

12. Revolut EURR

EURR is Revolut's euro stablecoin. The issuer is Bridge Building S.A. in Luxembourg, listed in the ESMA register with a notified white paper since 23 July 2026; Revolut acts as the provider. According to Revolut's announcement EURR is initially available only to selected customers in Denmark, Poland and Portugal. DefiLlama tracks just $1.9m on Ethereum so far. A word of caution: StablR in Malta also issues a euro stablecoin with the ticker EURR, likewise MiCA authorised. The issuer is what matters, not the ticker.

Euro stablecoins compared

Euro stablecoins are a niche: all of them together account for 0.26% of the stablecoin market. At the same time, the five largest euro stablecoins by supply (EURC, EURCV, EURI, EURe and EUROP) are all MiCA authorised, because their issuers are European banks and e-money institutions. These are the euro-pegged tokens with a notified white paper, sorted by supply:

All issuers listed in the ESMA register of e-money token issuers as of 30 September 2026. Supply and chains according to DefiLlama, retrieved on 2 October 2026 at 01:40 UTC.

EURC is larger than all the others combined. For investors this means: if you want to hold euros on a blockchain and still find buyers on many exchanges, EURC is currently the most liquid choice. A euro stablecoin is not the same as the digital euro the ECB is preparing; the differences are explained in our article on the digital euro versus stablecoins.

Which blockchains do stablecoins run on?

The same stablecoin can exist on many blockchains, and the chain decides fees, speed and where you can use it. According to DefiLlama, Tron (50.2%) is the largest home of USDT, ahead of Ethereum (40.1%). USDC is concentrated on Ethereum (61.6%), followed by Hyperliquid (9.9%) and Solana (9.7%). EURC sits mostly on Ethereum (73.4%), while RLUSD is split between Ethereum (50.8%) and XRP Ledger (49.2%).

When you send a stablecoin, sender and receiver must use the same chain. Sending USDT on Tron to an Ethereum address does not arrive. Our guide to sending USDT over TRC20 explains fees and common traps. Moving USDC between chains runs through Circle's bridge, whose first version is being retired, see USDC CCTP V1 shutdown, and Circle is building its own chain, Arc.

Types of stablecoins

Fiat-collateralized stablecoins

The vast majority, including USDT, USDC, EURC, PYUSD, RLUSD and EURR. For every token issued, the issuer holds reserve assets in the reference currency, usually bank deposits, cash equivalents and short-dated treasury bills. The value depends on the issuer: on its reserves, its supervision and whether it reliably honours redemptions.

Crypto-collateralized stablecoins

DAI and USDS are minted against locked crypto assets, with more collateral than the value issued. If the collateral falls in value, positions are liquidated automatically. This works without a company in the middle, but it ties the coin to crypto market volatility and to smart contracts.

Algorithmic and synthetic stablecoins

Algorithmic stablecoins try to hold their peg through supply and demand without full backing. The collapse of TerraUSD in May 2022 showed how fast this can fail. Synthetic dollars such as Ethena's USDe hedge their value with derivatives and form a separate risk class.

Commodity-backed stablecoins

These tokens are tied to a physical asset, most often gold, for example Tether Gold (XAUT) or Pax Gold (PAXG). Their price moves with the commodity, so they are stable against gold, not against the dollar. Under MiCA they are not e-money tokens and fall under separate rules.

How do stablecoins keep their peg?

For fiat-backed stablecoins the peg rests on two mechanisms. The first is primary issuance and redemption: authorised customers can deposit one dollar with the issuer and receive one token, or return one token and receive one dollar. The second is arbitrage. If USDC trades at 0.99 dollars on an exchange, a trader can buy it there and redeem it with the issuer for a full dollar; if it trades at 1.01, the trader mints new tokens and sells them. Both trades push the market price back towards one dollar.

The mechanism only works as long as markets trust that redemption will be honoured. That is why reserve quality, supervision and access to redemption matter more than the promise on the website. Crypto-backed stablecoins replace redemption with overcollateralization and automatic liquidations; synthetic stablecoins rely on their hedges being open and funded.

What are stablecoins used for?

• Trading: Most crypto trading pairs are quoted in USDT or USDC, and traders park profits in stablecoins without leaving the exchange.
• Cross-border payments: A stablecoin transfer settles in minutes, around the clock. Banks and payment firms are building on this, as our report on Citi and Coinbase stablecoin payments shows.
• Decentralized finance: Stablecoins are the main collateral and settlement asset in lending protocols and decentralized exchanges.
• Holding a hard currency: In countries with high inflation, a dollar stablecoin is a way to hold dollars without a US bank account.

Which stablecoins are MiCA compliant?

Since June 2024 the EU Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) governs stablecoins in the EU. A stablecoin pegged to a single official currency counts as an e-money token. Under Article 48, only an authorised bank or electronic money institution that has notified a white paper to its supervisor may offer such a token to the public in the EU or seek its admission to trading. ESMA lists these issuers in a public register that it updates weekly.

Two rules matter most for holders. Under Article 49, the issuer must redeem an e-money token at any time and at par value, without a fee. Under Article 50, neither the issuer nor crypto-asset service providers may pay interest on it. That is why offers of seven percent on stablecoins deserve a close look, as explained in our article on the MiCA interest ban.

According to the register, USDC, EURC, Revolut's EURR, EURCV, USDG, EURe, EURI, EURQ and EURAU are among the authorised tokens on 30 September 2026. There is no entry for USDT, PYUSD, RLUSD, DAI, USDS, USDe, USD1 or FDUSD. Which exchanges hold a MiCA licence themselves is shown in our comparison of MiCA-regulated exchanges.

Stablecoin regulation outside the EU

The United States set federal rules for payment stablecoins with the GENIUS Act, signed in July 2025. It requires one-to-one reserves in cash and short-dated US government debt and obliges issuers to redeem tokens. How US supervisors are filling in the details on backing and redemption is covered in our piece on the Fed rules for stablecoins. Other financial centres such as New York and Dubai supervise individual issuers directly, which is the route Ripple took for RLUSD. A licence in one jurisdiction does not carry over: RLUSD is supervised in New York and Dubai but has no MiCA authorisation in the EU.

Why is USDT hard to find in the EU?

USDT is not banned. If you own USDT you may hold it and transfer it to your own wallet. But because Tether has no authorisation as an electronic money institution in the EU, regulated platforms may no longer offer USDT to the public here. Many have closed their USDT markets for EU customers or limited them to selling. That has knock-on effects: on many exchanges altcoins only trade against USDT and have no euro pair, as our analysis of euro trading pairs shows.

USDT vs USDC: which is better?

For investors in the EU the authorisation speaks for USDC: Circle is supervised in France as an electronic money institution, holders have a MiCA right to redemption at par, and regulated exchanges may keep offering USDC. USDT on the other hand has the larger supply and is the main trading pair on more exchanges outside the EU. One USDT and one USDC are both meant to be worth one dollar, but they are separate tokens from separate issuers; swapping one for the other is a trade, not a conversion. If you mainly buy, sell and cash out in the EU, USDC or a euro stablecoin is the simpler choice.

Risks of stablecoins

• Losing the peg: Every stablecoin can trade below its reference value when trust in its backing falters. Algorithmic designs have failed completely, as TerraUSD did in 2022.
• Issuer and reserve risk: A fiat-backed stablecoin is a claim on a company. If its reserves are impaired or held at a bank that fails, redemption can be delayed or reduced.
• Freezes: Issuers can block individual addresses, for example on request of authorities.
• Smart contract and bridge risk: Tokens on secondary chains often depend on bridges, which are a frequent target of hacks.
• Regulatory risk: A stablecoin that loses or never gets a licence can be delisted in a whole region, as USDT was in the EU.

What is the safest stablecoin? Five checks

No stablecoin is risk free. These five questions separate solid offerings from shaky ones:

• Issuer and supervision: Is there an authorised company behind the coin, and in which country? For the EU, the ESMA register answers this.
• Redemption: Can you return the token to the issuer for dollars or euros, and on what terms?
• Reserves: What are they made of, where are they held and who audits them? An audit is worth more than a monthly attestation.
• Freeze function: The issuer of a fiat-backed stablecoin can freeze individual addresses. How Tether does this is shown in our guide to the USDT blacklist and to USDT key control.
• Liquidity: A large supply and many trading venues make it easier to sell close to par even in turbulent market conditions.

Can you earn yield on stablecoins?

Not from the issuer of an e-money token in the EU: MiCA prohibits interest on USDC, EURC and the other authorised tokens, and also prohibits crypto-asset service providers from paying it. Yield offers on stablecoins therefore come from somewhere else. Platforms lend the tokens on to borrowers, protocols such as Sky pay a savings rate on USDS out of their own revenue, and tokenized fund products pass on treasury bill interest. Each route adds a risk that the plain stablecoin does not have: the borrower, the protocol or the fund structure.

How to buy stablecoins

You can buy authorised stablecoins such as USDC and EURC on exchanges with a MiCA licence, usually directly with euros by bank transfer or card. Compare fees and available trading pairs in our crypto exchange comparison. Before you withdraw to your own wallet, check which chain the exchange sends on and whether your wallet supports it. In most countries stablecoins are taxed like other crypto assets, so even swapping USDT for USDC can be a taxable disposal.

Frequently asked questions about stablecoins

What is a stablecoin?

A crypto token whose value is pegged to a fixed reference, usually the US dollar or the euro. An issuer holds reserves for it, or a protocol holds collateral.

What is the largest stablecoin?

Tether's USDT with $184.0bn in circulation on 2 October 2026, ahead of USDC with $74.1bn (DefiLlama).

Is USDC safer than USDT?

For EU users USDC has the stronger legal position: an authorised issuer in France, a right to redemption at par and continued availability on regulated exchanges. USDT has no MiCA authorisation.

Is 1 USDC equal to 1 USDT?

Both aim for one dollar and usually trade within a few basis points of it, but they are different tokens from different issuers. Exchanging one for the other is a trade on a market, not a one-to-one conversion.

Can stablecoins lose their peg?

Yes. A stablecoin can trade below its reference value when markets doubt its backing or its redemption. Fully backed, supervised stablecoins have so far returned to their peg; algorithmic ones such as TerraUSD have failed completely.

Which stablecoins are MiCA compliant?

Among others USDC, EURC, Revolut's EURR, EURCV, USDG, EURe, EURI, EURQ and EURAU, according to the ESMA register as of 30 September 2026.

Is there a euro stablecoin?

Yes, several. The largest is Circle's EURC with about 418.3 million tokens, followed by EURCV from Société Générale-Forge. Revolut launched EURR in 2026.