PayPal's stablecoin cryptocurrency PYUSD has seen impressive growth, with a 70% increase in its market capitalisation over the past month, now reaching $290 million. Launched in August 2023 in partnership with Paxos, PYUSD has quickly risen to prominence in the cryptocurrency ecosystem.
Expansion and adoption of PYUSD
After its launch, the total stock of PYUSD had reached 43.3 million by the end of August. At that time, Paxos held 90% of PayPal's stablecoin supply, indicating concentrated distribution. Since then, the market capitalisation has increased more than fivefold to $293 million.
The integration of PYUSD into centralised exchanges such as Crypto.com and Kraken, as well as decentralised finance protocols (DeFi), seems to have contributed to its growth. Crypto.com currently holds the largest share with 112.8 million tokens, or 38.7% of the total supply. This widespread adoption positions PayPal among the top ten stablecoin issuers.
DeFi integration and Channel Activity
DeFi protocols have started to integrate stablecoin. For example, Curve, a popular DEX protocol, currently includes a liquidity pool with PYUSD and Frax's decentralised stablecoin, totalling an escrowed value of $135 million.
In terms of activity on the blockchain, exchanges of PYUSD into other stablecoins, WETH and ETH, are mainly being observed, with expectations for further integration with DeFi protocols. The stablecoin's daily trading volume has been recorded at around $29 million over the past 24 hours.
Conclusion
The rapid rise of PYUSD in the cryptocurrency ecosystem illustrates the increasing adoption of stablecoins and their growing importance in the world of digital finance. With an ever-increasing market capitalisation and extensive integration into various protocols and exchanges, PayPal's PYUSD is establishing itself as a major player in the stablecoin market.
