The market capitalization of the USDC stablecoin is nearing a historic milestone of $80 billion as demand accelerates, particularly in the Middle East. Some analysts suggest the recent surge may be linked to investors moving capital out of traditional markets in the United Arab Emirates.

Data from CoinMarketCap indicates that USDC’s circulating supply has climbed to approximately $79.2 billion, marking a new all-time high for the dollar-pegged stablecoin. The previous peak was slightly below $79 billion, recorded in December of last year. The growth has occurred rapidly over recent weeks. In early February, USDC’s market capitalization stood just above $70 billion, before rising to around $75 billion earlier this month.

Market turmoil may be driving stablecoin demand

Dubai-based analyst Rami Al-Hashimi suggested the surge reflects increasing demand from investors seeking to shift funds away from conventional financial markets. In a post published Friday on X, Al-Hashimi said that over-the-counter (OTC) trading desks in Dubai have been struggling to meet the strong demand for USDC. The analyst connected the rise in stablecoin demand to instability in the UAE’s real estate sector. According to his claims, property prices in Dubai have declined by roughly 27% this month, prompting investors to redirect capital into digital assets.

TradingView data also indicates that the DFM Real Estate Index, which tracks publicly listed real estate and construction companies in Dubai, has experienced a substantial sell-off. The index dropped from around 16,800 at its recent high to approximately 11,516, representing a decline of about 31%. Al-Hashimi added that some property sellers have begun accepting cryptocurrency directly as payment. According to him, certain listings now offer price reductions to buyers who pay using Bitcoin.

USDC surpasses USDt in transaction activity

Meanwhile, research from Japanese investment bank Mizuho indicates that USDC has overtaken Tether’s USDt in adjusted transaction volume for the first time since 2019. In a research note, the bank reported that USDC has generated approximately $2.2 trillion in adjusted transaction volume so far this year, compared with about $1.3 trillion for USDt.

This shift gives USDC roughly 64% of the combined transaction share between the two stablecoins. Despite the change in activity levels, USDt continues to dominate the stablecoin market by total market capitalization. The token currently holds a valuation of around $184 billion, significantly larger than USDC’s approximately $79 billion.

Sources:

https://cointelegraph.com/news/usdc-market-cap-nears-80b-uae-capital-flight-analyst

https://www.tradingview.com/chart/?symbol=DFM%3ADFMREI

https://x.com/rami_hashimi/status/2032440070976819590

https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/usd-coin/