Stablecoin Flows Shift: Polygon and Plasma Lead in Real Usage

Major stablecoins are showing divergent growth patterns across blockchain networks. USDT0, a cross-chain stablecoin, is seeing its fastest growth on Polygon and Plasma, signaling a potential shift in how stablecoins are moving across crypto networks.

Token Terminal’s data shows Polygon’s USDT0 deployment at about $850 million in circulating supply, with a 25% increase in active senders over the past month.

Plasma is showing even higher market capitalization alongside robust user growth. Larger USDT0 positions on chains like Arbitrum One, however, are experiencing flat or declining user activity.

Token Terminal data shows Polygon and Plasma leading in both circulating supply and user activity.

By contrast, USDT0 on Arbitrum One, with a market cap around $950 million, saw declines in sender growth over the same period.

Smaller networks, including Ink, OP Mainnet, HyperEVM, Berachain, and Sei EVM, showed little to no activity despite holding USDT0.

The data suggests that large liquidity alone doesn’t guarantee adoption and networks are increasingly defined by how actively their tokens are used.

Meanwhile, Circle’s USDC remains heavily concentrated on Ethereum, which holds roughly $55 billion in circulating supply. However, merging blockchain networks are showing rapid adoption.

Secondary networks such as Arbitrum One, Solana, and Base each hold multi-billion-dollar USDC supplies and continue posting solid 30-day growth. 

High-performance chains HyperEVM (Hyperliquid) and Starknet are experiencing extraordinary momentum, with USDC growth exceeding 200% over the past month.

Cost Efficiency Driving Migration

Data from Token Terminal confirms rising USDT0 activity on Polygon and Plasma, with both networks recording high circulating supply alongside increasing user engagement. While overall supply remains concentrated on major Layer-1 and Layer-2 chains, these lower-cost, faster networks are seeing incremental growth.

Such a trend is structurally significant as it shows where stablecoin liquidity is actually being used, not merely held. On Polygon and Plasma, USDT0 is actively moving, whereas on other chains, large balances may remain largely inactive.

If the trend continues, users could increasingly favor cheaper, faster networks for transactions, potentially influencing where DeFi activity, trading, and payments concentrate. Polygon and Plasma provide lower costs and faster transaction finality compared with other chains.

Although this represents an early signal rather than a confirmed trend, monitoring USDT0 activity on these networks may reveal whether the growth reflects a temporary reallocation or a more durable change in market structure.

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