$USDC Circle has established its position as stablecoin #2 (market capitalization $33B) with unmatched transparency—monthly attestation and 100% cash/US Treasury support. Key advantages compared to competitors:

• "Institutional Trust" – BlackRock & Fidelity use USDC for ETF settlement.

• "Multi-Chain" – Native on over 15 networks (Arbitrum gas fee only $0.03).

• "Regulatory Advantage" – Approved by NYDFS with Fed master account processing.

Latest updates:

- Gas-free transfers through Circle Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol.

- Yield-generating USDC (4.5% APY) for corporate clients.

Trading pairs like BTC/USDC and ETH/USDC benefit from tighter spreads compared to USDT on Coinbase. As the "cleanest" stablecoin, USDC has become the default dollar for compliant DeFi.