Beyond USDT and USDC: PYUSD, RLUSD, USAT, EURC and the Challengers
PayPal, Ripple, MoneyGram and banks all issue stablecoins now. A clear guide to the challengers, what each is built for, and which ones matter for payments.
Key takeaways
- PayPal, Ripple, Tether's US arm, Circle's euro coin and MoneyGram all issue stablecoins now.
- RLUSD grew about 86% in 2026 to roughly $2.49B; EURC is the leading euro coin.
- No single coin will win every corridor, so payment providers increasingly route between them.
Two years ago the stablecoin market was a two-horse race with a few ponies at the back. In 2026 the field looks more like a marathon start line. Payment companies, a remittance giant, banks and even blockchains themselves now issue their own digital dollars. Most won't overtake the big two. Several will matter anyway, because of who they're built for.
PYUSD: the checkout dollar
PayPal's stablecoin is the one most likely to reach people who have never opened a crypto app. Its advantage isn't technology; it's the hundreds of millions of accounts already sitting inside PayPal and Venmo. By late September 2026 it was a little ahead of Ripple's coin in size, roughly in the $2.7 billion range. Watch it for merchant payments and person-to-person transfers inside the PayPal world.
RLUSD: Ripple's institutional dollar
Ripple's stablecoin launched at the end of 2024 and has grown quickly with a very specific audience in mind: banks, payment providers and treasuries. Its supply passed about $2.49 billion at the end of September 2026, up more than 86% since January, split between Ethereum and Ripple's own XRP Ledger. Its reserves sit with a New York trust company, and it gained approval in Japan this year. Our Ripple deep dive covers where it fits in Ripple's bigger plan.
Total supply, year-end
Share of supply, Oct 2026
- USDT60%
- USDC24%
- Others16%
Source DefiLlama stablecoin dashboard, October 2026. The record was about $321B in May 2026.
USAT: Tether goes American
Rather than reshape USDT for US rules, Tether launched a separate dollar in January 2026, issued through Anchorage Digital and designed around the GENIUS Act. It's a sensible way to keep USDT's global reach while giving US institutions a version they can legally hold. It also shows where the industry is heading: one brand, several regulated wrappers, each tuned to a jurisdiction.
EURC: the euro finally shows up
Almost every stablecoin is a dollar. Circle's EURC is the most visible exception, authorised under MiCA through the same French licence as USDC. It's still small, around €474 million in October 2026, but Europe's rules are deliberately nudging businesses towards euro-denominated tokens. For anyone paying salaries, suppliers or rent in euros, it's worth knowing it exists.
MGUSD: remittance gets its own coin
This one matters most to anyone who has ever queued to send money home. MoneyGram, a name generations of migrants know from the counter at their local shop, launched its own regulated digital dollar on the Stellar network in 2026. That's a remittance company admitting, in effect, that the future of sending money home runs on stablecoin rails, with cash pickup as one of the payout options rather than the whole business.
Bank coins and everything else
Banks in the US, Europe and Asia are testing their own tokenised deposits and stablecoins, and some newer coins pay a yield. We'd treat the yield-bearing ones carefully: under the GENIUS Act, ordinary payment stablecoins aren't allowed to pay you interest just for holding them. A coin built for savings and a coin built for spending are different products, and it's fine to want both, as long as you know which is which.
What this means for people who just want to pay
- More choice, less loyalty. No single coin will win every corridor, so providers will increasingly route between them.
- Local currencies are coming. Euro stablecoins are the start; expect more local-currency tokens as regulators get comfortable.
- Brands you already trust are moving in. PayPal and MoneyGram issuing stablecoins does more for mainstream trust than any crypto ad campaign.
The question is no longer whether stablecoins will be used for everyday money. It's which one moves your payment, and who decides.
We think the answer should be whichever coin gets the most money to the other side, with the final amount shown clearly before anyone pays. Nobody should have to read a guide like this just to pay their mother's electricity bill. (But we're glad you did.)
Frequently asked questions
What are the newest stablecoins?
Notable newer stablecoins include PayPal's PYUSD, Ripple's RLUSD, Tether's US-regulated USAT, Circle's euro coin EURC and MoneyGram's MGUSD.
How big is Ripple's RLUSD?
RLUSD's supply reached about $2.49 billion at the end of September 2026, up more than 86% since January.
Do newer stablecoins like PYUSD or RLUSD pay interest?
No. Under the US GENIUS Act, payment stablecoins, new or old, cannot pay holders yield simply for holding them. Yield products are separate, regulated offerings.
Sources and further reading
- RLUSD market cap hits $2.49B, up 86% since start of 2026, KuCoin News
- RLUSD Q2 2026 report, Stablecoin Insider
- Tether launches US-regulated USAT, Decrypt
- MiCA's July 1 hard deadline (EURC and USDC status), Stablecoin Insider
- Q2 2026: What Stellar was built for has arrived, Stellar Development Foundation
This article is for general information and is not financial, legal or tax advice. Figures are as reported by the sources above at the time of writing.
