In a recent podcast, Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan said stablecoins are in a “pre-game” phase and will soon “sweep” the market.
- The global stablecoin market capitalization increased 1.24% over the past week to a record high of over $314 billion.
- Hougan pointed to activity from firms such as Stripe and Circle as evidence that regulation is beginning to shape the market.
- According to him, stablecoins are likely to “sweep” the market over the next few years, with most payments made on dollar-pegged tokens.
Bitwise chief investment officer (CIO) Matt Hougan said during a podcast that crypto regulation is currently in the “pre-game” and that stablecoins are likely to “sweep the market” in the coming months.
“You haven’t seen anything yet,” Hougan said during the New Era Finance Podcast, hosted by crypto analyst Michael van de Poppe. “This is the pre-game, like, the game hasn’t started yet. It goes live… I see November, I see January 1 of next year.
The stablecoin market capitalization has climbed higher even as the broader cryptocurrency market struggled amid the crypto winter. It touched a record high of over $314 billion on Wednesday morning, up 1.24% over the past week, according to data from DefiLlama.
Why Is Matt Hougan Bullish On Stablecoin Boom?
Hougan pointed to fintech firm Stripe's aggressive expansion in the space and to USDC issuer Circle’s (CRCL) latest earnings, which came in ahead of analyst estimates, as indications thatstablecoin regulation is already having an impact. “That’s the way laws work, right? You pass them, and then there’s time for the industry to adapt them,” he said.
Hougan forecast that all payments will likely be made using stablecoins within a few years. “I think it’s going to sweep the market,” he said. “I think people maybe got too excited when the GENIUS Act passed, and now they aren’t excited enough about the scale of impact. It’s going to be a massive boom.”
What Is Retail Saying About Stablecoins?
Data on Stocktwits showed retail sentiment around Tether (USDT) improved to ‘bullish’ from ‘neutral’ territory over the past day amid ‘high’ levels of chatter. However, retail sentiment around Tether’s GENIUS-compliant stablecoin USAT (USAT) saw retail sentiment continuing to trend in the ‘neutral’ zone.
Meanwhile, retail sentiment around Circle’s USDC (USDC) and PayPal USD (PYUSD) – both of which are expected to comply with the GENIUS Act and CLARITY Act regulations – remained in ‘bearish’ territory over the past day.
One user on the platform said that stablecoins are emerging as the new ‘safe haven’ assets amid the current geopolitical uncertainty.
Circle’s stock gained as much as 1% in pre-market trade, with retail sentiment rising to ‘bullish’ from ‘neutral’ territory over the past day.
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