Stablecoins: The Only Thing Making Money?

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So, it appears the grand, sweeping narratives of Layer 1 ecosystems – all that breathless talk of “throughput” and whatever else they’re chasing this week – might be, shall we say, slightly less profitable than expected. While everyone’s busy trying to invent digital gold, the actual gold seems to have been quietly accumulating… elsewhere.

Stablecoins, those remarkably un-glamorous workhorses of the crypto world, have, it turns out, rather cleverly become the sector’s dominant revenue engine. They’re everywhere, they’re reliable (mostly), and they control everything. It’s a bit like finding out your accountant is secretly a benevolent dictator.

This has resulted in issuers raking in… well, rather a lot of money. Tether [USDT], for instance, managed to generate over $10 billion in profit in 2025. Which is, frankly, a number so large it’s almost comical. One starts to suspect they’ve discovered a previously unknown dimension filled entirely with slightly-used satoshis.

Stablecoin issuers have evolved into large-scale revenue generators, with Ethereum serving as the dominant settlement layer, anchoring that growth. Because naturally. Everything still ends up on Ethereum. It’s like the universe has a favorite blockchain.

In 2025 alone, these issuers generated roughly $5 billion in revenue tied to Ethereum-based supply. Quarterly revenue gently increased from near $1.2 billion early in the year to about $1.4 billion by Q4. It’s not the most exciting growth trajectory, but it’s suspiciously consistent. One almost suspects someone is deliberately holding back even more profit, just to be annoying.

And, naturally, stablecoin supply on Ethereum [ETH] grew by nearly $50 billion, surpassing $160 billion. Because of course it did. What else would it do? Start issuing interpretive dance lessons?

As reserves expanded, yield-based income scaled predictably. This dynamic reinforces Ethereum’s financial gravity, deepens liquidity, and strengthens its role as core on-chain monetary infrastructure. Or, as we like to call it, “The Ethereum Thing.” Don’t ask too many questions about The Ethereum Thing.

ONDO emerges as a core liquidity hub for tokenized RWAs

ONDO Finance is rapidly consolidating its position as a leading real-world asset platform, with Ondo Finance [ONDO] pushing total value locked (TVL) to roughly $2.5 billion by January 2026. This is mostly just people taking real-world money and putting it into a digital box, which, honestly, sounds remarkably like something one might do with change under the sofa.

Earlier in 2025, TVL hovered just above $1 billion. Since then, capital has accelerated sharply, driven by tokenized yield products. Which mostly means people are hoping for more digital money in exchange for their real-world money. A remarkably circular sort of endeavor, when you think about it.

Tokenized U.S. Treasuries account for nearly $2 billion, led by OUSG and Ondo US Dollar Yield [USDY]. Meanwhile, tokenized stocks and ETFs exceed $500 million across more than 200 assets. It’s all very… tokenized. One does wonder if someone will start tokenizing the concept of “tokens” itself.

As ONDO expands across multiple chains, its scale signals growing institutional confidence in on-chain RWAs. Or possibly just that institutions have discovered a new way to move money around without involving actual humans.

Is RWA TVL growth following stablecoin liquidity cycles?

RWA TVL growth increasingly tracks stablecoin supply expansion, revealing a clear liquidity-driven relationship. In other words, more stablecoins equals more RWAs. Congratulations to everyone for noticing a painfully obvious correlation.

As the stablecoin market cap climbed toward $280-300 billion by late 2025, RWA TVL simultaneously expanded to roughly $16-19 billion. It’s like watching two particularly predictable planets orbit a slightly less predictable sun.

This side-by-side growth reflects function, not coincidence. Stablecoins act as settlement rails and yield-bearing inputs for tokenized treasuries and equities. It’s a whole ecosystem of complicatedness, designed specifically to make tax accountants very happy.

Consequently, platforms like Ondo doubled TVL beyond $2.5 billion as stablecoin-backed demand intensified. Which, as we’ve already established, is remarkably predictable.

Therefore, the trend signals structural conviction, though short-term stalls in stablecoin issuance can temporarily cap RWA momentum. Because, of course, nothing in crypto is ever entirely straightforward.

Final Thoughts

  • Stablecoins have become crypto’s most reliable profit engine, translating settlement scale into recurring cash flows while Ethereum reinforces its role as the dominant on-chain monetary layer.
  • Concurrently, RWA growth remains liquidity-driven, with TVL expansion closely following stablecoin supply, positioning platforms like ONDO as beneficiaries of stablecoin-backed demand rather than speculative cycles.

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2026-01-26 10:16