$USDC

Currently in a somewhat awkward but highly representative stage: it is one of the most compliant and transparent stablecoins, yet it is gradually being marginalized in a market that is becoming increasingly impatient with 'compliance'.

Since the end of 2024, the sentiment in the crypto market has warmed up, and a large amount of capital has returned to high-risk assets and non-compliant sectors. $USDT, with its liquidity and privacy, has once again become the main trading medium, while $USDC has seen a decline in exchange activity and DeFi usage frequency. Although Circle has successfully promoted USDC's compliance status in the United States and the European Union, compliance does not bring traffic; rather, it imposes restrictions—KYC thresholds and review mechanisms have caused it to lose favor with native crypto users.

On the other hand, USDC's strategy is shifting from 'DeFi currency' to 'Web2.5 infrastructure': it is being integrated by traditional payment systems like Visa and Stripe, gradually filling the gaps in the SWIFT system for cross-border settlement and off-chain payments, which is also a key bargaining chip for it to remain 'in the game'.