Euro Stablecoins Struggle to Compete with Dollar Dominance in Crypto Markets

The euro is the second most important global currency after the dollar. However, euro stablecoins play virtually no role in the crypto sector, despite numerous initiatives.

Ever heard of EURC, Stais Euro, or EURCV? Even the three most important euro stablecoins worldwide are something of a secret; combined, they generate less than €100 million in trading volume on typical days in the crypto markets. For comparison, Tether (USDT), the leading dollar stablecoin, alone achieves a daily volume of $80 billion.

Together with its main competitor, USDC (Circle), the US dollar generates a hundred times more daily trading volume than the euro in its various blockchain variants. Jan-Oliver Sell also puts the starting point for stablecoins aiming to challenge the dollar at a market share of just 0.2 percent for the euro. Sell recently became CEO of the qivalis project, with which a dozen major European banks aim to break the dollar’s absolute dominance in the stablecoin sector.

EURC, Stais Euro and EURCV – Euro stablecoins as a niche product

Qivalis is still waiting for its first thousand followers on X, but the as-yet-unnamed Euro stablecoin is expected to cause a stir in the second half of the year. Tether, the leading stablecoin provider, discontinued support for its Euro version EURT in November 2025, citing a lack of demand and excessive European regulation.

While the EU did introduce regulatory guidelines for the crypto sector relatively early, in July 2024, with the MiCA rules , the anticipated strengthening of Euro stablecoins has failed to materialize.

MiCA rules and world politics – the Euro seeks its role as a stablecoin

Jan-Oliver Sell aims to change that with qivalis and, in his interview with CoinDesk, has to juggle three roles simultaneously. There’s the crypto scene he wants to reach. Then there are the banks like DeKa and Raiffeisen, which Sell now represents in the consortium.

And somehow, politics is also involved when the former head of Coinbase Germany makes pronouncements like “Europe’s financial and digital sovereignty” is threatened if the euro isn’t also made liquid on blockchains. The euro’s market share in traditional financial markets worldwide is a good 20 percent, second only to the dollar, which holds nearly 60 percent.

Qivalis’ crypto-euro aims to launch in 2026

Project Qivalis will not fail due to MiCA regulations or a lack of reserves; the backing from major European banks is more than solid. However, these financial institutions are not acting as philanthropists. Fees allow issuers of stablecoins to achieve smaller margins.

The real business lies where deposits in government bonds generate interest. Tether has continuously perfected this principle and, with just a few hundred employees, achieved a profit of $10 billion last year. Euro stablecoins face their primary problem on the demand side, and two factors are crucial here.

Historically grown hurdles for Euro stablecoins in the crypto scene

Prices for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have always been quoted in US dollars, meaning even the smallest fluctuations are potentially profitable for day traders and those in the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector. Similar to oil or gold prices, markets have adapted to settling in dollars – this pattern has also historically developed in the crypto industry.

Besides this universal application of dollar-denominated stablecoins, cryptocurrency exchanges like Coinbase and Binance advertise attractive interest rates. It remains conspicuously unclear whether qivalis intends to capitalize on this. Interest rates on euro-denominated stablecoins, similar to those offered by savings accounts, could prove enticing and attract users.

Conclusion: Euro stablecoins are a good idea, opportunities open – qivalis is about to be put into practice

Many arguments in the stablecoin debate resemble the claims that aim to make Wero a competitor to Mastercard and Visa. Qivalis, at least, isn’t relying on EU funds, but rather on profit prospects: forecasts agree that the stablecoin market will grow from billions to trillions by the end of the decade.

Whether European companies can get a piece of the pie is another question, one that the debut of the Qivalis stablecoin will soon try to answer.

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(Featured image by Mathieu Stern via Unsplash)

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