The recent atmosphere in the crypto world is quite peculiar—appearing calm on the surface, but turbulent beneath.

I’ve been watching on-chain data for a while, and the total market cap of stablecoins has already surpassed $310 billion, hitting a new all-time high. The moment I saw this number, I didn’t feel like it was a night of celebration, but more like an eerie calm before the storm. Those huge funds lying in various wallets are less like dormant volcanoes and more like ones gathering strength. These funds haven’t left the crypto market; they’ve just withdrawn from higher-risk assets and poured into stablecoins, the "safe harbor." They are patiently waiting—for a sufficiently low price to appear—then making their move.

**The Role of Stablecoins Is Quietly Changing**

If you still see stablecoins merely as transitional tools for trading, you’re really falling behind the times. The current situation is this: stablecoins now account for nearly 20% of the entire crypto market. How exaggerated is this proportion? A simple example makes it clear.

USDT, with a market cap of $187 billion, leads by a large margin, holding over 60% of the share, becoming the "central bank" of the crypto world. USDC follows closely behind, with a market cap exceeding $60 billion. Together, these two dominate 87% of the market.

What’s even more interesting is the operational efficiency of these stablecoins. Take USDT as an example: its turnover rate is as high as 166—meaning, on average, each USDT changes hands 166 times in a year. What does this extremely high capital turnover rate indicate? It shows that during times of tight market liquidity, USDT almost becomes the "universal currency" of the crypto world.