MiCA regulations mostly benefited USDC, Kaiko says

As Europe gears up for the implementation of MiCA regulations, demand for compliant stablecoins has primarily benefited only one company, data shows.

Europe’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), aimed at regulating the crypto market and specifically targeting stablecoins, triggered a rush among issuers to comply. However, despite the apparent competition, only one stablecoin firm has benefited from the stringent regulations so far — Circle.

According to data from French blockchain analytics firm Kaiko, Circle’s Euro-pegged stablecoin (EURC) and its more known USD Coin (USDC) have experienced the most significant increases in daily trading volumes following the implementation of MiCA.

Société Générale, which has also developed its own stablecoin called Euro Convertible (EURCV), after lifting its dubious restrictions, also saw a volume uptick, Kaiko says, noting though that it remained modest at $4,000, likely due to its availability solely on Bitstamp.

“[…] the share of compliant stablecoins has increased over the past year, suggesting increased demand for transparency and regulated alternatives. So far, this trend has mostly benefited USDC.”

Kaiko

Currently, non-compliant stablecoins dominate the market, “accounting for 88% of the total stablecoin volume,” the Paris-headquartered firm says, adding though that MiCA “could shift this balance as exchanges and market makers favor compliant stablecoins over non-compliant alternatives.”

Major crypto exchanges like Binance, Bitstamp, Kraken, and OKX have already started delisting non-compliant stablecoins for their European customers.

In 2024, USDC’s weekly trading volume surged to $23 billion, up from $9 billion in 2023 and $5 billion in 2022, pushing USDC’s market share to a record high, what Kaiko attributes to its increased usage on both decentralized exchanges (DEXs) and centralized exchanges (CEXs).

Another factor driving USDC’s growth is its increased use for perpetual futures settlement, the firm says, noting that the share of Bitcoin (BTC) perpetuals denominated in USDC traded on Binance and Bybit rose to 3.6% from 0.3% in just six months. Moreover, USDC’s usage in Ethereum (ETH) perpetuals trading also grew, with ETH-USDC trade volume rising to over 6.8% from 1% at the beginning of the year.

In early July, Circle announced it had become the first stablecoin company to achieve compliance with MiCA policies. Meanwhile, speculation arose about Tether’s future in Europe after platforms like Bitstamp delisted its euro-denominated offering, Tether EURT. Additionally, the European crypto trading platform Uphold ceased support for USDT and several other dollar-pegged stablecoins.