USDC leads USDT in trading against the euro, Kaiko says

A shift measured in euro trading pairs

Data communicated by Kaiko puts USDC ahead of USDT in stablecoin trading against the euro. Its share reached 56% in September 2026, compared with 10% in January 2024. The provider says USDC has accounted for more than half of this segment every month since June 2025. These figures measure neither all activity by European investors nor the entire cryptocurrency market: their scope is pairs combining a stablecoin with the euro.

Kaiko also finds greater depth in USDC euro order books. In its sample, median orders near the mid-price amount to about $27.3 million for USDC, versus $19.3 million for USDT, a difference of roughly 40%. Depth describes orders available within a given price range; it is distinct from actual traded volume and does not guarantee execution conditions for every future transaction.

European restrictions are shifting trading channels

Kaiko links this change to USDT restrictions applied to customers in the European Economic Area. The largest movement in its series occurred in March 2025, when USDC’s share rose from 25% to 46%. The timing alongside changes at several platforms helps explain the movement of liquidity. It does not, however, establish a single cause for every transaction or imply that global demand for USDT has disappeared.

The regulatory context became clearer with ESMA’s October 8 opinion. The European supervisor asks authorized providers to stop services involving stablecoins that do not comply with MiCA and to remediate existing exposures. Transitional operations must be limited to liquidation, conversion, withdrawal, transfer or temporary safekeeping. That framework affects services available through the intermediaries concerned; it does not make different markets interchangeable or itself measure their volumes.

Closer supervision for Circle’s digital dollar

On October 14, the European Banking Authority classified USDC, issued by Circle Internet Financial Europe, as the Union’s first significant e-money token. The transfer of part of its supervision to the EBA is due to take effect November 12. It covers own funds, reserves, liquidity requirements and recovery or redemption plans, among other areas. France’s ACPR retains other responsibilities, including governance and conflicts of interest.

The classification imposes additional obligations; it is not a guarantee of returns or an absence of risk. The token must also be distinguished from the currency used to buy it: USDC remains dollar-pegged even when traded against euros. Circle separately issues EURC, designed to represent the euro. Kaiko’s finding therefore concerns a digital dollar’s position in a European trading channel, rather than growth in a stablecoin denominated in European currency.