Bitcoin is up more than 75% this year, but the market capitalization for stablecoins has dwindled in the same period. The market cap for the dollar-backed USD Coin has dropped about 41% since Jan. 1, while Binance USD has fallen 78% in the same period, according to CryptoQuant. Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies whose prices are pegged to an underlying asset. It's typically a fiat currency – usually the U.S.
"People expected that once that was plugged, they'd be stabilized. That's not what happened, it has just kept declining ever since." That could in part be due to a shift out of U.S.-based stablecoins as pressure on the crypto industry from regulators intensifies, according to David Wells, CEO of Enclave Markets.