USDC Volume Hits $2.2T, Surpassing Tether for First Time Since 2019
Circle's USDC stablecoin has achieved a significant milestone in the digital payments race, with its year-to-date transaction volume reaching approximately $2.2 trillion in 2026. This figure eclipses the $1.3 trillion processed by its primary competitor, Tether's USDT, and marks the first time since 2019 that USDC has led in activity. The shift gives USDC a dominant 64% share of adjusted stablecoin volumes, a reversal from previous years where it averaged around 30%.
The market has responded decisively to this momentum. Shares of Circle (CRCL) have surged over 100% in the past month, recently trading around $120. This performance reflects growing investor conviction that real-world utility, rather than market capitalization alone, will determine the long-term winners in the stablecoin sector. Mizuho analysts, citing the stronger usage trends, raised their price target on Circle to $120 from $100.
Enterprise Deals with Visa and Intuit Solidify Payments Strategy
Driving this growth is a focused strategy on embedding USDC within the global financial infrastructure. On March 16, 2026, Circle announced it is expanding its enterprise partnerships, including new deals with payments giant Visa and financial software company Intuit. These integrations aim to accelerate USDC adoption for everyday commerce and business transactions.
This builds on an already established foundation. Visa's existing network supports over 130 stablecoin-linked cards across 50 countries, processing an annualized settlement volume of roughly $4.6 billion. Simultaneously, Circle’s own Circle Payments Network, which facilitates cross-border institutional transfers, now serves 55 institutions and has reached $5.7 billion in annualized volume. These efforts directly address the $58.9 trillion cross-border payments market by offering faster and more efficient settlement rails.
Analysts Project 60% Upside on New Use Cases
Wall Street analysts project that Circle's growth is just beginning. A report from Bernstein sets an outperform rating on the stock with a $190 price target, implying approximately 60% upside from its recent price of $120. The firm’s thesis is that stablecoin adoption is decoupling from speculative crypto cycles and is now driven by tangible payment applications.
Several emerging use cases support this bullish outlook. The market for tokenized assets, which often use USDC for settlement, has expanded from $1.5 billion in 2023 to $26.5 billion. Prediction markets like Polymarket processed over $22 billion in volume in 2025, largely settled in USDC. Furthermore, Circle is capturing the nascent field of AI-driven commerce, with early data showing that 98% of payments between autonomous software agents are settled using its stablecoin.
