HomeCryptocurrency NewsAltcoinsTether market cap nears $70B as SEC crypto crackdown hurts stablecoin rivals

Tether market cap nears $70B as SEC crypto crackdown hurts stablecoin rivals

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) plans to sue Paxos for issuing and itemizing its Binance USD (BUSD) stablecoin, benefitting its top-rival, Tether (USDT), whose market capitalization has risen to multimonth highs. 

BUSD market cap drops by $2 billion

The SEC claims that BUSD, a U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin, is a safety, noting that Paxos has violated investor safety legal guidelines by white-labeling it.

Related: Paxos ‘categorically disagrees’ with the SEC that BUSD is a safety

Since Feb. 13, when the news broke, the BUSD market cap has misplaced roughly $2 billion, right down to round $14 billion as of Feb. 16 — the bottom since January 2022. 

BUSD circulating provide. Source: Messari

As Cointelegraph reported, Binance has seen its withdrawals and BUSD redemptions surge post-Paxos crackdown.

USD Coin market cap downtrend continues

At the identical time, USD Coin (USDC), the second-largest stablecoin by market capitalization, has additionally witnessed capital outflows in response to the SEC crackdown news. Its provide decreased from $41.29 billion on Feb. 12 to as little as $40.99 billion on Feb. 14.

However, this determine rebounded to $41.30 billion on Feb. 15 after Circle clarified that it had not acquired any lawsuit menace from the SEC.

Despite latest inflows, USDC’s market cap stays in a normal downtrend since its June 2022 peak of $56 billion — a 25% decline over the previous eight months.

Tether dominance jumps, market cap rises over $69 billion

The regulatory crackdown on U.S.-based stablecoin companies has been a boon for high stablecoin Tether, whose market cap has jumped over $69 billion.

Data exhibits that almost $890 million of inflows since Feb. 12 has pushed Tether’s market dominance to 51.25% as of Feb. 15.

USDT circulating market cap. Source: Messari

The bounce possible means that traders had been spooked by the crackdown on BUSD and sought security in Tether USDT. Tether is owned by Hong Kong-based iFinex, which additionally owns the Bitfinex cryptocurrency alternate.

Related: USDT vs. USDC vs. BUSD: What are the similarities and variations?

Investigators have lengthy tried to uncover the accounting behind Tether to show that its circulating USDT provide is just not 100% backed by the greenback (and even a mixture of different cryptocurrencies, treasury payments, cash market funds and different property) because it claims.

Tether has repeatedly denied the accusations and gives common assurance opinions signed by third-party accounting corporations each quarter.

Tether Reserves breakdown. Source: Tether.to

The newest report from Dec. 31, 2022, states that consolidated property amounted to a minimum of $67 billion, exceeding consolidated liabilities by a minimum of $960 million.

This article doesn’t include funding recommendation or suggestions. Every funding and buying and selling transfer includes danger, and readers ought to conduct their very own analysis when making a call.