$USDC
USD Coin (USDC) is a cryptocurrency stablecoin which is issued by Circle. It is pegged to the United States dollar, and is distinct from a central bank digital currency (CBDC).
USDC operates as an Ethereum ERC-20 token and is also available on several other blockchain platforms such as Base and Polygon. Visa initiated a pilot program to send USDC via the Solana blockchain to payment firms Worldpay and Nuvei, who could then transfer payment to merchants.
According to Forbes in December 2024, USDC primarily competes with Tether, which dominates the market by market capitalization. USDC and Tether nearly reached parity in 2022, but USDC declined coinciding with the Collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, where Circle held reserves. According to data compiled by Visa, USDC overtook Tether in stablecoin transaction volume in August 2024.