Tether’s dollar-linked stablecoin USDT has hit a record circulation of $188 billion.

On April 22, local time, blockchain media outlet Cryptopolitan reported that Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino (파올로 아르도이노) confirmed the figure. He said it was a new high for USDT, the world’s largest stablecoin.

The figure is up from about $184 billion in early March. At the time, USDT accounted for about 58 percent of the overall stablecoin market, which was worth about $315 billion. Some analysis says the supply expansion aligns with rising demand for digital dollars, particularly in emerging markets with limited access to traditional finance. Ardoino has said more than 550 million people worldwide use USDT for payments and saving, calling it a “digital dollar for the masses.”

USDT earlier faced a period of declining supply this year. Supply fell by $1.5 billion in February and by $1.2 billion in January. The February decline was the largest since the collapse of FTX. Tether said the reduction at the time was due to a “strategic repositioning,” not an exodus from Tether. Ardoino stressed that usage remained solid in markets such as Argentina, and supply has now returned to a record high.

Tether also presented its financial capacity. According to Tether and external data, the company manages about $187 billion in assets and made more than $10 billion in profit in 2025. In a quarterly update in February, Tether disclosed USDT reserves of about $192.9 billion and equity of $6.3 billion. It presented this as a buffer that can sustain the core ecosystem even if market volatility rises.

It also stressed that concentration is low in the circulation structure. Ardoino said the largest remittance account for USDT represents less than 5 percent of total activity. He compared that with about 25 percent for some rival tokens. By network, USDT circulating on Tron was about $86.7 billion, near a record high. That is read as a sign that market liquidity and demand are being maintained at the same time.

Stablecoin use is also expanding beyond providing liquidity on exchanges into real-world payments, remittances and financial infrastructure. DoorDash is developing a Tempo-based stablecoin payment infrastructure to simplify settlements with merchants and delivery workers in more than 40 countries. Tempo said it is building a system with DoorDash to support digital-currency settlement across the broader ecosystem of delivery workers, merchants and users.

DoorDash co-founder Andy Wang (앤디 왕) said stablecoins have real potential to reshape financial infrastructure not only in the United States but worldwide, and the company wants to participate actively rather than remain a passive observer. He said there would be clear benefits across the ecosystem if it can pay merchants and delivery workers faster and at lower cost.

Tempo said the infrastructure supports high-speed processing, virtually instant settlement and low, stable fees. It said it provides separate transaction rails that can maintain performance even when transaction volumes surge. It also said an ISO 20022-compatible memo field can structure fund settlements across multiple currencies and countries.

This trend is spreading to other payments companies. Stripe agreed in 2024 to acquire the stablecoin platform Bridge for $1.1 billion, and Mastercard acquired BVNK in March for about $1.8 billion. Visa also moved in July to expand its settlement platform. Moves are accelerating to bring stablecoins into global payments and corporate treasury infrastructure beyond their role as tools supporting crypto trading.

The pace of USDT’s development shows stablecoins are taking hold as payment and settlement infrastructure beyond crypto trading. Moves by DoorDash and major payments companies also support the view that stablecoin use cases are expanding into real-world applications.