Direct competition between the two leading stablecoins is gradually giving way to specialization. According to a Dune study, USDT dominates the payments segment, while USDC has become the primary settlement asset for DeFi.
The differences between the two stablecoins are most evident in how they are actually used. During the first half of 2026, approximately $95 B in tracked commercial payments was processed through USDT, compared with $14 B through USDC. In business-to-business settlements, USDT accounted for approximately 92% of the total $48 B transaction volume.
In DeFi, USDC remains the leading settlement asset. In June, the stablecoin processed approximately $2.6 T in transfers on the Base network, the highest volume among all stablecoin-blockchain pairings. Another approximately $1.6 T in transactions took place on the Ethereum network.
Further evidence of this trend can be seen in USDT's circulation on the Tron network. Around 93% of the token's supply is held in regular user wallets rather than on exchanges, indicating that it is actively used for transfers and payments.
Together, USDT and USDC account for about 83% of the stablecoin market, which has a total capitalization of approximately $315 B. In a market of this size, the differences between the two largest assets are increasingly becoming an established pattern rather than an exception.