Bloomberg Intelligence strategist Mike McGlone says the next big shake-up in crypto might not come from Bitcoin or Ethereum — it could come from a stablecoin.
In a note this week, McGlone singled out Tether’s USDT as the “unlikely contender” quietly climbing the market ranks. His thesis: in an increasingly crowded token ecosystem, capital is gravitating toward instruments that deliver stability and utility during macro uncertainty — and USDT is benefiting. McGlone now expects a “flippening” of a different sort: Tether’s assets under management could overtake Ethereum in 2026 and eventually surpass Bitcoin.
The numbers underline that momentum. Ethereum’s market cap is roughly $272 billion today, while Tether sits near $184 billion — up from about $144.2 billion a year ago, a gain of roughly 27.6%. Tether controls about 58% of the global stablecoin market, and together with USDC the two account for around 82% of total stablecoin market share. That dominance reflects USDT’s central role as a dollar-denominated on‑ and off‑ramp, liquidity vehicle for trading, and settlement medium across exchanges and DeFi.
McGlone pairs his stablecoin bullishness with a starkly bearish view on Bitcoin. He warns that BTC remains in a corrective phase since its 2025 peak and could fall much further if macro and equity markets roll over. McGlone’s charting — which compares Bitcoin’s yearly candle to the S&P 500 and 180‑day volatility — shows stock‑market volatility at a low reading (12.5) for 2026; a reversal in that trend could drag Bitcoin down. He points to price rejection above $70,000 and says Bitcoin must hold above $75,000 to invalidate the scenario of a crash toward the $10,000 range. McGlone frames ~$10,000 as a long‑term equilibrium zone since the introduction of futures in 2017.
What this could mean: a larger stablecoin footprint would reshape how capital flows through crypto — boosting dollar‑pegged liquidity and potentially changing market leadership dynamics — while a deep Bitcoin drawdown would have broad implications for sentiment, institutional participation, and risk assets tied to crypto.
As always, McGlone’s outlook is one strategist’s view — notable for its contrarian emphasis on a stablecoin overtaking native crypto giants — and highlights how structural shifts in liquidity and macro conditions can rapidly alter market hierarchies.
Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news
