Stablecoins

Stablecoins: mechanics, reserves and redemption

A stablecoin is a claim on an issuer. Understanding who the issuer is, what they hold, and how you get your money back matters more than the ticker.

Reserve, issuance and redemption claims on this site link to the issuer’s own transparency disclosures. We do not restate reserve figures as our own numbers, because they change and the issuer’s published attestation is the authoritative record.

A thick coil of weathered rope on a cracked concrete quay, still water and fog-covered hills beyond it at dawn.

Stablecoin

What a Cross-Border Stablecoin Transfer Actually Costs

A central bank ran 200 USDC across ten corridors and found total costs from 0.30% to 8.96% — with the on-chain leg almost irrelevant. Where the money actually goes.

Railway tracks splitting at a switch, wet ballast and a red signal beneath dusk sky.

Stablecoin

CCTP Fast vs Standard: What the USDC Transfer Fee Buys

Circle's cross-chain transfer protocol has two speeds. Fast pays 0–13 basis points for an attestation before finality; Standard waits. The trade is time against risk.

A wide flight of dry stone steps descending into clear green water, the lower steps progressively submerged beneath the surface.

Stablecoin

What Is Inside a Stablecoin's Reserves: Cash, Bills, Loans and the Liquidity Ladder

A 100% reserve ratio compares a token count with a valuation. What decides whether redemption can be met is the mix inside the reserves, the term of each asset and who owes the money.

Three white glazed ceramic jugs of different sizes standing in a row on a stone ledge in soft side light.

Stablecoin

Money Market Funds vs Stablecoins: Different Claims

Both promise a dollar back and both hold short-term debt. One is a registered fund with a rulebook, the other a token with an issuer. The difference shows up when you need the dollar.

A brass measuring rod laid across stacked leather ledgers on a dark desk.

Stablecoin

Stablecoin Yield vs T-Bill Yield: Where the Extra Return Comes From

A stablecoin pays nothing by itself. Any yield on top of it is paid by a borrower, a platform or a fund, and each of those pays for a reason.

A small harbour toll booth at blue hour with calm water and moored boats behind it.

Stablecoin

On-Ramp Fees vs Spread: What a Fiat Deposit Really Costs

A 0% fee can be more expensive than a 1% one. The cost of turning fiat into a stablecoin lives in the fee, the price and the payment rail.

A carved marble fountain with water spilling into a still green basin in soft daylight.

Stablecoin

Minting vs Buying on the Secondary Market: Where the Peg Is Set

Minting with an issuer and buying on a venue are different markets with different rules. How the two connect, and why the peg is only ever approximate.

A wall of white ceramic tiles with a raking shadow falling across part of it.

Stablecoin

Stablecoin Depegs: Redemption Frictions vs Secondary-Market Liquidity

A stablecoin's price can fall below its redemption value because redemption has conditions. Eligibility, settlement time, rails and capacity each widen the gap.

A dark monitor showing a steep red price line, its glow spilling across the desk.

Stablecoin

Reading a Stablecoin Depeg Off the Price Chart

USDCUSDT printed no trades at all for 166 days before March 2023, then fell 11.8% inside one hour. What a thin stablecoin chart does and does not record.