Stablecoin Issuers 2026: Who Issues USDT, USDC, USD1 and More

The biggest stablecoin issuers in 2026 are Tether (USDT) and Circle (USDC), which together account for about 83% of the roughly $311 billion of dollar stablecoins in circulation as of 2 October 2026, according to DefiLlama. Behind them sits a crowded second tier: Sky (USDS and DAI), Ethena (USDe), World Liberty Financial (USD1), Paxos (USDG and PayPal's PYUSD), Ripple (RLUSD) and a first wave of bank-issued tokens.

This guide explains who these stablecoin companies are, who actually issues and holds the reserves for each token, how they differ in backing and regulation, and what to check before you hold one.

The stablecoin market at a glance

The table below lists the largest US dollar stablecoins by circulating supply. Tokenized money market funds such as BlackRock's BUIDL appear in some stablecoin rankings, but they are investment funds rather than payment stablecoins, so they are left out here. We cover them in our guide to tokenized treasuries.

Supply figures from DefiLlama, read on 2 October 2026. They change daily.

Two things stand out. First, concentration: USDT alone is more than twice the size of USDC, and everything below the top two is under $7 billion. Second, the "issuer" is often not the brand on the token. PayPal does not issue PYUSD and World Liberty Financial does not currently issue USD1. Regulated trust companies do, and that distinction matters when you ask who owes you a dollar.

Tether and Circle: the two giants

Tether (USDT)

Tether is the oldest and largest issuer. USDT is issued outside the US and is the dominant dollar on centralized exchanges and on chains such as Tron. Tether publishes quarterly reserve attestations prepared by the accounting firm BDO on its transparency page. Its reserves are mostly US Treasuries and repo, but unlike most rivals it also holds gold, bitcoin and other investments, which is why analysts watch its "excess reserves" buffer closely each quarter.

In January 2026 Tether added a second, US-facing token. USAT launched on 27 January 2026, issued by Anchorage Digital Bank and designed to fit the GENIUS Act framework, with Cantor Fitzgerald as reserve custodian. It is still small: about $183 million in circulation as of 2 October 2026, per DefiLlama.

Circle (USDC)

Circle issues USDC and is a listed company in the US. According to Circle's transparency page, most USDC reserves sit in the Circle Reserve Fund (USDXX), an SEC-registered money market fund managed by BlackRock, with the rest held as cash at large banks. A Big Four accounting firm provides monthly assurance reports. USDC is the stablecoin most widely used in DeFi lending and liquidity pools, including on Sui, where it is issued natively.

Paxos, PayPal and the Global Dollar Network

Paxos is a regulated issuer that runs stablecoins for other brands. It issues PayPal USD (PYUSD) through Paxos Trust Company, a New York trust company, and it issues Global Dollar (USDG). USDG is the token of the Global Dollar Network, a consortium whose members include Robinhood, Kraken, Galaxy Digital, Anchorage Digital and Bullish. Paxos issues USDG from Singapore and, for European users, through a Finnish entity under MiCA.

This "issuer-as-a-service" model is spreading. A brand gets a stablecoin without needing its own charter; the regulated issuer holds the reserves and handles minting and redemption.

Newer entrants: Ripple, World Liberty and the banks

Ripple (RLUSD)

Ripple issues RLUSD through Standard Custody & Trust Company, a New York limited-purpose trust company supervised by NYDFS. On 12 December 2025 the OCC gave Ripple conditional approval to form Ripple National Trust Bank, which is planned to manage RLUSD reserves. RLUSD was about $2.5 billion in supply on 2 October 2026.

World Liberty Financial (USD1)

USD1 launched in March 2025 and is currently issued by BitGo, with monthly attestations published on BitGo's USD1 page. World Liberty Financial is linked to the Trump family, and on 14 August 2026 the OCC gave conditional approval to World Liberty Trust Company, which is intended to take over issuance from BitGo once it meets pre-opening conditions. Our full USD1 explainer covers the details.

Banks

Banks are now issuers too. SoFi launched SoFiUSD in December 2025, issued by SoFi Bank, N.A., and in September 2026 began using it for card settlement on Mastercard's network. Other large banks are working on tokenized deposits instead, which are a different legal product; see tokenized deposits vs stablecoins.

Crypto-backed and synthetic issuers: Sky and Ethena

Not every large stablecoin is backed by bank deposits and Treasuries.

Sky, the protocol formerly known as MakerDAO, issues USDS and the older DAI. Both are minted against collateral locked in on-chain vaults, with a growing share of real-world assets. Holders can deposit USDS into the Sky Savings Rate to receive sUSDS; that rate was 3.6% on 2 October 2026, per DefiLlama's yield data. It is set by Sky governance and can change.

Ethena issues USDe, a synthetic dollar backed by crypto and other assets that are hedged with short futures positions. It is not fiat-backed and is not a payment stablecoin under US law. Supply peaked near $14.8 billion in early October 2025 and was about $4.9 billion on 2 October 2026. Our USDe explainer walks through how it works and where the risks sit.

How regulation is reshaping issuers

The US GENIUS Act, signed on 18 July 2025, sets the rules for "payment stablecoins". It limits issuance to bank subsidiaries, OCC-approved federal issuers and state-qualified issuers; requires 1:1 reserves in cash, short-term Treasuries, Treasury repo and money market funds; bans issuers from paying interest or yield to holders; and makes issuers follow Bank Secrecy Act, anti-money-laundering and sanctions rules. That explains the wave of trust charter applications from Ripple, World Liberty and others, and Tether's decision to launch a separate US token. Our GENIUS Act guide covers the timeline.

In practice, every regulated issuer runs identity checks on the businesses and individuals who mint and redeem directly, and screens wallets and counterparties against sanctions lists. Most use specialist KYC, KYB and AML-screening vendors, such as iDenfy, rather than building it all in-house. If you work on the compliance side, our comparisons of KYC and KYB software for crypto exchanges and sanctions screening tools go deeper. In Europe, MiCA applies separately; see MiCA-compliant stablecoins.

How to compare stablecoin issuers

Before you hold a stablecoin for more than a short trade, check five things:

1. Who is the legal issuer? Look past the brand to the regulated entity that owes you redemption.
2. What backs it? Cash and short-term Treasuries are the plainest. Crypto collateral and hedged positions add different risks.
3. How often is it attested, and by whom? Monthly reports from a named accounting firm are the norm for US-regulated issuers. Read our proof of reserves guide for what an attestation does and does not prove.
4. Who can redeem directly? Usually only verified institutions. Retail holders rely on exchange and DeFi liquidity, which is where depegs happen. See stablecoin depegs explained.
5. Where is it liquid? A stablecoin is only as useful as the markets on the chain you use.

Where JewelSwap fits: JewelSwap does not issue a stablecoin. On Sui, its leveraged yield farms built on Scallop and Cetus include stablecoin pairs, and our guide to stablecoin yield farming explains how those strategies work and what can go wrong.

Frequently asked questions

Who is the largest stablecoin issuer?

Tether. USDT had about $184 billion in circulation on 2 October 2026, per DefiLlama, more than twice Circle's USDC at about $74 billion.

Which stablecoin companies are regulated in the US?

Circle, Paxos, Ripple's Standard Custody, BitGo and SoFi Bank all operate under US state or federal charters. Under the GENIUS Act, payment stablecoin issuers must be bank subsidiaries, OCC-approved federal issuers or state-qualified issuers.

Does PayPal issue PYUSD?

No. PYUSD is PayPal's brand, but it is issued by Paxos Trust Company, a New York-regulated trust company that holds the reserves.

Are USDe and USDS stablecoins?

They aim to hold $1, but neither is a fiat-backed payment stablecoin. USDS is backed by on-chain collateral and real-world assets managed by Sky. USDe is a synthetic dollar backed by hedged positions.

Can stablecoin issuers pay interest?

Not under the GENIUS Act, which bars payment stablecoin issuers from paying interest or yield to holders. Yield on stablecoins usually comes from lending, liquidity provision or savings wrappers such as sUSDS.

Do banks issue stablecoins?

Some do. SoFi Bank, N.A. launched SoFiUSD in December 2025. Other banks are building tokenized deposits, which are a claim on a bank deposit rather than a reserve-backed stablecoin.

Keep reading

• Stablecoins explained
• What is the USD1 stablecoin?
• What is USDe? Ethena's synthetic dollar explained
• The GENIUS Act explained
• Stablecoin payments in 2026
• JewelSwap crypto glossary

This article is educational and isn't financial advice. Circulating supply and yield figures are from DefiLlama as of 2 October 2026 and change daily. Issuer, custody and charter details are from the issuers' own disclosures and the sources linked above, checked on 2 October 2026. JewelSwap does not issue stablecoins.