If you only look at the names, you would think they are two 'stablecoins' with similar properties, comparable risks, and consistent uses.

But when you truly understand the background of these two tokens, you will find that they are not the same kind of thing, and even the 'purpose of their birth' is completely different.

USDT is more like a currency that naturally grew out of chaos in the market.

USDC, on the other hand, is an attempt by the regulatory system to establish order amidst chaos.

One comes from the underworld, and the other comes from the system. This is the most essential difference.


1. USDT: Unpopular, but irreplaceable

The logic of USDT has never been 'compliance', but 'practicality'.

Its mission is singular: to allow anyone in any corner of the globe to obtain an on-chain dollar without a bank account.

Its underlying story is as follows:

Reserve is opaque.

Historical controversies continue.

Frequently mentioned by regulators.

But it will always have the largest trading volume.


This sounds full of contradictions, but the reality it reflects is just the opposite:

The more opaque the system, the easier it is to flow into places excluded from the system.

The gray trade in the Middle East, inflation fugitives in South America, and cross-border traders in Southeast Asia do not need perfect assets; what they need is usable dollars.

The role of USDT is not to provide a sense of security but to provide survival capability.

The more chaotic a country's financial system is, and the more a society lacks access to dollars, the greater the demand for USDT. This is not product logic; this is the logic of the times.


Second, USDC: an extension of the regulatory system, not a substitute.

The design goal of USDC has never been to 'serve everyone'.

It targets financial institutions, compliant enterprises, and regulated markets.

Its characteristics are very clear:

Reserve disclosure is transparent.

Custody is clear.

Affected by the U.S. regulatory framework,

As policy directions continue to adjust structures.

In other words, USDC is the extension of the U.S. regulatory system on the chain.

Therefore, its advantage is not liquidity, but legitimacy.

When financial institutions need on-chain dollars, when enterprises need reconciliation, auditing, compliance, and when larger capital begins to enter Web3, USDC is the target they can choose.


Its risk is very simple:

Because of 'compliance', it is also the easiest to be 'controlled'.

Assets can be frozen, on-chain addresses can be banned, and cross-border use can be restricted; these possibilities will always accompany it.

USDC is not a tool for de-dollarization; it is a tool for the digitalization of dollar governance.


Third, if you place these two on a world map, you will see a very interesting distribution.

You will see USDT wildly grow in areas that should have financial services but cannot access them; while USDC steadily advances in areas that should have rules and rely on rules to operate.

One is the dollar for financial refugees.

One is the dollar of the institutional system.

Neither is nobler than the other, nor is either more advanced.

They just happen to stand in different cracks of the times, pushed to the largest scale by their respective demands.


Fourth, if I must summarize the difference between USDT and USDC in one sentence, I would say this:

USDT is the market's self-rescue of the dollar.

USDC is the reconstruction of the dollar by the United States.

The former lives on demand, while the latter grows through systems.

One is used to escape the system, the other is used to expand the system.

One spreads in the gray area, while the other takes root within the regulatory framework.

This is also why, in the foreseeable future, they will not disappear. Because the world is not made up of a single order.

A world with order needs USDC, while a world without order needs USDT.

Only those who truly understand the differences between the two can be said to truly understand 'why stablecoins are important'.

Thank you for watching. I am Xiao Fei, nice to meet you all. Xiao Fei focuses on Ethereum contract spot ambush, and the team still has spots available, bringing you to become a dealer and also become a winner.#特朗普加密新政 $ETH$BTC