After Ethereum Fees, Stablecoins Shadows Bitcoin [BTC] Transactions for the First Time

By Nivesh Rustgi
Updated May 12, 2025
Bitcoin

Data analytics portal, Coinmetrics, reveals that the daily transaction value surpassed Bitcoin for the first time in history. The last 7-days adjusted value of stablecoin transfers is $2.1 billion, while that of Bitcoin is $1.9 billion.

The supply of stablecoins has surpassed $11 billion for the first time with USDT dominance around 88.75%.

usd stablecoin supply surpasses bitcoin
USD Stablecoin Supply (Source)

This comes after the reports of Ethereum fees overtaking Bitcoin with the rise of DeFi and other decentralized applications. Hence, while attention towards cryptocurrency transfers seems to be increasing, high transaction fees on Bitcoin [BTC] seems to be acting as a deterrent. Moreover, the higher volume of stablecoin volume, not cheaper crypto suggests risk-off from crypto investments as well.

Store of Value Vs. Decentralized Applications

One of the leading USPs of cryptocurrency is permissionless and border transactions. The security, on the other hand, is provided by the strength and distribution of the validators (or miners on the network).

With a plethora of blockchain platforms gaining recognition, the future of Ethereum seems dicey as well. As AVA Labs procures a private sale of $12 million AVAX tokens led by Galaxy Digital, Bitmain, Initialized Capital, NGC Ventures and Dragonfly Capital, Max Keizer, notes,

In 2020 we learned that #Bitcoin is impossible to knock-off, but ETH is very easy to knock-off ETH’s market cap will cede to others in that space.

This is a significant feat as 2020 saw high transaction fees on Bitcoin close to halving. Nevertheless, the traders have remained oblivious to concentrating only on the Store of Value (SoV) properties of Bitcoin.

The realized market capitalization is calculated on the basis of units of supply at the price it last moved on-chain. It recently reached an All-Time High above $106 billion, which is 17.5% greater than the value attained during the 2017 high at $20,000. This suggests that more than twice the volume is moved on-chain that it was during the maximum hype.

However, as we move ahead in time, blockchain and cryptocurrency users will look for cheaper methods of transfers. While Bitcoin is the most secure network, it is not the cheapest by a fair amount.

Do you think that other cryptocurrencies will take over Bitcoin or second layer solutions will uphold Bitcoin’s dominance? Please share your views with us. 

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Nivesh Rustgi
Nivesh from Engineering Background is a full-time Crypto Analyst at Coingape. He is an atheist who believes in love and cultural diversity. He believes that Cryptocurrency is a necessity to deter corruption. He holds small amounts of cryptocurrencies. Faith and fear are two sides of the same coin. Follow him on X at @nivishoes or mail him at nivesh(at)coingape.com
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