ChainThink reports that, according to a Bernstein research report, USDC supply surged by approximately $1.7 billion in the final week of August, ending a six-month period of flat decline.
Circle's stock has rebounded 42% since its plunge triggered by concerns over OUSD competition. Bernstein maintains a "Outperform" rating on Circle with a $140 price target, representing a 59% upside from the current stock price.
Bernstein believes that the macro interest rate environment, expansion of on-chain capital markets, widespread adoption of stablecoin payments, and AI agent payments are the four driving forces behind a new cycle of stablecoin expansion.
The ARC blockchain will launch on September 16 and has attracted institutions such as BlackRock, DTCC, Mastercard, and Visa as founding validator nodes.
DTCC will tokenize custodied assets on-chain, and Marex has completed its first derivatives margin transaction backed by a stablecoin.
In 2025, adjusted stablecoin trading volume reached approximately $11 trillion, and as of July 2026, the annualized run rate was approximately $17 trillion, representing a 60% year-over-year increase. USDC's market share rose from 40% to over 60%.
The x402 protocol processed approximately 20 million transactions in August, with USDC accounting for over 99% of its transaction volume.