The stablecoin market could soon eclipse the entire crypto trading ecosystem that gave birth to it as regulatory tailwinds allow for the integration of the fixed-value tokens into the mainstream economy, according to predictions from global bank Citi.

Above and beyond their role as tokenized cash for the crypto trading community, stablecoins — digital tokens whose value is pegged primarily to the U.S. dollar — are already expanding into payments and remittances. The next five years will likely see them replacing some overseas and domestic U.S. currency holdings as well as forming part of the short-term liquidity held at banks, according to a recent report from Citi Institute’s Future Finance think-tank. If yield-bearing stablecoins can be issued, those may find a role in term deposits and retail money market funds.

“We’re looking at the integration of stablecoins into what you call the mainstream economy,” Ronit Ghose, the global head of Future of Finance, Citi Institute, said in an interview. “For example, stablecoins could be the cash leg for tokenized financial assets, or for payments by SMEs and large corporates. The dollar, and to a lesser extent the euro, has this kind of international currency status. Stablecoins allow people all over the world to hold dollars or euros in an easy, low cost way.”

The stablecoin market size is currently around $240 billion, led by Tether’s $145 billion USDT and Circle’s $60 billion USDC. In Citi’s base-case prediction, stablecoins will grow to $1.6 trillion by 2030, provided regulatory support and institutional integration take hold. In the bank’s more bullish scenario, the market could balloon to $3.7 trillion. (The global cryptocurrency market cap today stands around $3.45 trillion.)

Large crypto firms like Fireblocks, a platform for managing and moving crypto assets, said it’s also noted a swing in stablecoin use away from a settlement and on/off ramp trading tool toward payments.

“Payment companies are leveraging stablecoins for a variety of pure-play payment flows, including cross-border transfer, remittance, merchant settlements and others,” CEO Michael Shaulov said in an email. “Payment companies represent 11% of all of our clients, but 16% of the overall stablecoin transactions with over 30% growth of Q/Q in volumes. It is likely that this growth will continue, and they will represent 50% of the stablecoin volume within 12 months.”

Over the past 90 days, the combined USDT and USDC volume on Fireblocks was $517 billion, some 44% of the total volume, a figure that has doubled over the past several years. Of that, payment companies generated $82 billion, up 38.2% quarter over quarter, Fireblocks said.

The Empire Strikes Back

In the past, Citi’s Future Finance team has weighed the potential of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), often seen as the antithesis of freewheeling libertarian innovation by the crypto community, a view also held by President Donald Trump.

For Citi’s Ghose, the growth of stablecoins raises many questions: If the U.S. supports stablecoins, will Europe too? Or will Europe prefer CBDCs? Will CBDCs grow in the rest of the world? How will deposit tokens and tokenized deposits play out?

Whatever the landscape looks like, banks will likely avail themselves of all of the above, Ghose said. All banks, by definition, conduct inter-bank payments, which make sense with a wholesale CBDC, as well as retail CBDCs, he said.

“Depending on the country, there may be a stablecoin option or there may be a CBDC option,” Ghose said. “From a crypto perspective, it’s like Starwars, where the CBDCs are the evil Empire, as opposed to the crypto guys, who see themselves as Luke Skywalker.”

Retail traders in South Korea are piling into XRP and dogecoin (DOGE) in a sign of returning risk-on sentiment among speculative traders.

Trading volumes of the two tokens on local exchanges crossed bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH) in the past 24 hours.

The surge comes amid renewed risk-on sentiment across crypto and equity markets as U.S.-China trade tensions ease and macro indicators point to possible rate cuts later this year, some traders say.

Both XRP and DOGE have climbed more than 15% over the past week, outpacing bitcoin’s 10% move, while ETH has soared nearly 40%, marking its biggest weekly gain since 2021.

“Risk assets have recovered sharply to levels that are now challenging even the most ardent bears,” said Augustine Fan, head of insights at crypto options platform SignalPlus. “We believe the pain trade remains to be higher prices until more macro bears throw in the towel.”

UpBit, the biggest by trading volumes in Korea shows 24-hour volumes on XRP/KRW and DOGE/KRW exceeded $250 million, while those for bitcoin and ether remain under $150 million.

The pattern mirrors previous euphoric retail phases in Korea’s crypto market, often dubbed the “Kimchi premium” era, where local investors aggressively chased high-volatility assets.

Korean crypto markets have long served as a bellwether for retail sentiment.

The move also coincides with a broader market rally fueled by a massive $1 billion short squeeze last week as overleveraged positions were forcibly closed amid surging prices.

“We subscribe to the view that this was a classic market short-squeeze against an exceptionally one-sided market,” Fan added. “There’s no evidence of significant ETH ETF inflows, suggesting this was purely a native positioning event.”

The enthusiasm in Korea also reflects improving geopolitical sentiment. U.S. and Chinese officials on Monday said they would heavily cut tariffs on some goods to 30% from 145% for 90 days, following weeks of speculation on what the two superpowers would do.

“Investors are less apprehensive about crypto as U.S.-China trade talks find resolution and rate cuts appear more likely,” said Jeff Mei, COO of BTSE. “If the Fed signals a dovish pivot next month, it could push bitcoin past all-time highs and re-ignite lending and investment in the U.S. economy.”

While traders continue to watch for follow-through on institutional ETF flows and upcoming central bank guidance in June, the short-term momentum suggests that altcoin speculation is leading the current leg higher.

This is a daily technical analysis by CoinDesk analyst and Chartered Market Technician Omkar Godbole.

Prices for privacy-protecting digital currency Zcash (ZEC) have moved past a key resistance or supply zone, hinting at bigger gains ahead.

Since February, ZEC has traded sideways, with sellers dominating above $40. Meanwhile, dips near $25 have consistently found support, keeping the price within a narrow range.

On Sunday, buyers finally managed to chew through the long-held supply zone of $40-$43, hitting a high of $45.80 on crypto exchange HTX, the level last seen on Jan. 26, according to data source TradingView.

The so-called range breakout is like a spring uncoiling bullishly after building up demand during consolidation. This release of stored energy often results in a sharp, rapid move higher.

Technical analysis theory suggests adding the range width, or the spread between the upper and lower range boundaries, to the breakout point. In ZEC’s case, the measured move method points to a rally toward $60.

Price moves through long-held resistance levels, as in ZEC’s case, often draws bids from breakout traders. These entities seek to enter positions when the price of an asset moves beyond a defined support or resistance level, aiming to capitalize on a continued move higher or lower.

ZEC’s peer, monero (XMR), recently broke out of a bigger and more prolonged range play with a bullish golden cross, surging to highs above $300. Readers should note that chart patterns do not always work as intended.