What USD Coin is designed to do
USD Coin (USDC) is a fiat-backed stablecoin, currently ranked 5th by market capitalization among the assets we track. USD Coin is a fiat-backed stablecoin: each token is meant to be redeemable for a reference currency held in reserve, so its job is to stay flat, not to appreciate. It is plumbing for the crypto economy rather than a bet on price.
How the peg is meant to hold
Pegs are defended by market makers who profit from closing any gap to par. The strength of that defense comes down to whether the backing assets are liquid and the issuer is solvent.
Where USD Coin sits in the market
At $1.00, USD Coin carries a market capitalization of $74.05B. Around $8.16B changes hands across exchanges in a typical 24-hour window. That is a turnover of about 11.02% of the float — elevated, often a sign of narrative-driven trading.
What the price history shows
Across timeframes, USDC shows 7-day +0.02%. Within its 721-day range, USDC sits around the middle (the 33rd percentile of recent daily closes).
Volatility profile
Recent action puts USD Coin in the Low-volatility band — it has been relatively stable, with moves typical of large-cap, mature assets.
How to evaluate a stablecoin like USD Coin
The honest checklist for USDC is short:
- Reserve quality — what backs USDC — cash and short Treasuries are safer than commercial paper or crypto collateral — and who attests to it.
- Redemption access — whether holders can actually redeem at par, and how quickly, under stress.
- Regulatory standing — the issuer's jurisdiction and licensing, which increasingly determines which stablecoins survive at scale.
This page pulls live market data, on-chain stats where available, exchange-by-exchange volume, and our forecast model into one view so you can work through those questions in a single place. None of it is investment advice — it is a structured starting point for your own research.
