Tokenized gold market hits $3.9B – Why inflows now rival stablecoins

ambcryptoPubblicato 2025-11-15Pubblicato ultima volta 2025-11-15

Key takeaways

Is stablecoin issuance surging again?

Circle and Tether have minted over $13.25 billion after the recent crash.

What’s the fastest-growing part of tokenization right now?

Tokenized gold, now at $3.9 billion, is expanding faster than most RWA categories.


Circle just added another $1 billion in USD Coin [USDC], pushing recent stablecoin creation to over $13 billion.

But the most interesting changes in tokenization aren’t happening just there. Another corner of the market is accelerating quietly, and that may be the big deal.

Stablecoin issuance accelerates again

Circle added another $1 billion in USDC in the last few hours. This is a continuation of large-scale minting that has pushed post-crash issuance by Circle and Tether [USDT] to $13.25 billion.

stablecoinsstablecoins

Source: X

Multiple $250 million USDC mints occurred in rapid succession.

Source: X

This reflects a major structural shift on Ethereum [ETH]: since January 2020, the supply of stablecoins on the network has grown by 65.5 times, vastly outpacing Ethereum’s own 21.6-fold increase in fully diluted market cap over the same period.

Stablecoins have emerged as one of Ethereum’s most successful use cases, attracting capital at a rate that surpasses the growth of the network’s native assets.

Tokenized gold: The next major inflow channel?

Stablecoins may dominate on-chain liquidity, but gold-backed tokens have become one of the fastest-expanding segments in tokenization.

Source: X

Over the past five months, the market cap of tokenized gold has climbed to $3.9 billion, led by XAUT at roughly $2.1 billion and PAXG at $1.3 billion. The chart shows a clear, uninterrupted rise since mid-2021, with the category growing nearly 50× in that period.

Demand has been steady rather than speculative. This is indicative of consistent inflows.

Why does this matter?

This matters because it shows how real-world assets are gaining traction.

Gold is a multi-trillion-dollar asset class, and even a small portion moving on-chain materially expands the scope of tokenized markets.

It shows growing demand for 24/7 settlement, transparent custody, and programmable ownership. These are advantages that apply regardless of the underlying chain.

As a result, more users are shifting toward blockchain infrastructure to manage assets that were traditionally held via custodians or ETFs.

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Upbit is Anxious: A Hasty Counterattack Aimed at Regaining Stablecoin Market Share

Title: Upbit's Rushed Counterattack to Reclaim Stablecoin Market Share Facing a dramatic shift in South Korea's stablecoin market, leading exchange Upbit launched a promotional campaign from July 26 to August 9, waiving the 0.05% trading fee for stablecoins paired with the Korean Won (KRW) and rapidly listing new stablecoins like RLUSD and USDG. This move is a direct response to its plummeting market share in this sector. Historically a duopoly with Bithumb, the market has been reshaped since October 2025 when Coinone permanently removed fees for USDC trading. By June 2026, Coinone led with 34.8% of stablecoin volume, followed by Bithumb (31.1%) and Upbit (30.1%). This contrasts sharply with the overall crypto market, where Upbit commands 60%. The data shows stablecoin demand is highly sensitive to fees, as users primarily buy them to transfer capital overseas for derivatives trading or forex arbitrage. South Korean exchanges have seen a net outflow of stablecoins for 18 consecutive months, totaling approximately 14.9 trillion KRW, underscoring their role as a cross-border capital conduit. Upbit's limited-time promotion initially boosted its daily stablecoin volume by 162%, but the surge was almost entirely in USDT (98.1% of volume). The newly listed stablecoins saw negligible, fleeting interest. Furthermore, the promotional effect quickly waned in the second week, with volume dropping 33% on weekdays. A concurrent weakening of the KRW also contributed to the trading spike, independent of the fee waiver. The analysis suggests that once the promotion ends, Upbit is unlikely to retain its temporary gains unless it matches Coinone's permanent zero-fee policy, forcing a choice between market share and fee revenue. Upbit's strategic push may be less about immediate profit and more about preparing for future regulatory shifts. With South Korea's *Digital Asset Basic Act* on the horizon, which will regulate KRW-backed stablecoins, and following Dunamu's (Upbit's parent) integration into Naver Financial to build a payment ecosystem, securing a dominant position in the dollar stablecoin distribution channel holds long-term strategic value. However, potential regulatory conflicts could prevent Upbit from listing a future Naver-issued KRW stablecoin, making the current fight for dollar stablecoin flow even more critical.

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Upbit is Anxious: A Hasty Counterattack Aimed at Regaining Stablecoin Market Share

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