Dollar stablecoins have captured 84% of the crypto card market: the euro initiative has collapsed
The cryptocurrency payment card market is undergoing a tectonic shift. Dollar stablecoins, primarily USDC and Tether (USDT), now account for about 84% of all spending on such cards. Just two years ago, euro-denominated tokens dominated, but today the balance of power has changed dramatically.
The turning point came after the launch of new card programs and the restructuring of settlement chains. Over this period, dollar stablecoins aggressively increased their share, while EURe (euro stablecoin) and the Gnosis Pay ecosystem rapidly lost ground.
Dollar share rises, euro collapses to 2%
Crypto cards allow users to pay with stablecoins and other digital assets anywhere in the world that accepts cards from major payment systems. Funds are automatically converted into local currency, and for the merchant, such a transaction looks like a regular payment.
At the start of 2024, EURe accounted for about 88% of turnover, with the vast majority of such transactions processed through the Gnosis network. Today, its share has collapsed to roughly 2%. According to my analysis of the latest data, the rapid growth of dollar stablecoins has almost completely displaced euro infrastructure from this segment.
USDC now accounts for about 58% of card spending, while USDT makes up roughly 26%. A year ago, these figures were about 48% and 7%, respectively. Clearly, the market is betting on the liquidity and stability of dollar assets, which have become the de facto standard for crypto payments.
"Spending on crypto cards now occurs predominantly in digital dollars," the report notes.
Monthly spending exceeds $759 million
Monthly crypto card turnover reached $759 million in July — 2.5 times higher than the $306 million result a year earlier. When I began tracking these figures in October 2023, the monthly volume did not exceed $1 million.
In July, users made nearly 9 million card purchases, compared to 5.2 million a year earlier. The average transaction value was about $86. Settlements are not limited to major networks — after the launch of new programs, their share has grown significantly.
Optimism (OP) accounts for about 29% of card transactions. Solana (SOL) and Base each hold roughly 19%, while Gnosis's share has dropped to 2%. Nearly all tracked spending still goes through Visa. The largest program by volume, RedotPay, publishes its own data but does not confirm settlements on on-chain networks, so the exact totals remain unclear.
Crypto card spending is still tiny compared to traditional payment systems, which process trillions of dollars monthly. However, the growth rate is impressive: if this momentum continues, we could see competition with classic financial instruments in the coming years.
My conclusion: this is not just a trend, but a fundamental shift in user behavior. Dollar stablecoins are becoming the bridge between the crypto world and the everyday economy, and ignoring this signal means missing a key growth driver for the entire sector.