The era of stablecoin 2.0 has arrived: new opportunities, new patterns, and investment directions.

Stablecoins, as a type of digital asset pegged to fiat currencies (primarily the US dollar), are essentially a series of standardized smart contracts. They are neither the same as traditional fiat currencies nor equivalent to central bank digital currencies (CBDC).

In terms of policy attitude, the previous U.S. government held a relatively friendly position towards stablecoins, believing that they help consolidate the global status of the dollar. In contrast, they were cautious about CBDCs, worrying that they might excessively expand government power and infringe on personal freedoms. In contrast, the EU and China tend to support the development of CBDCs while adopting a more stringent regulatory stance towards stablecoins.

With the gradual clarification of the stablecoin regulatory framework in the United States, the stablecoin industry is ushering in a new round of development opportunities. This not only attracts the participation of traditional financial giants but will also trigger intense competition in the stablecoin market.

The main functions of stablecoins include value storage, medium of exchange, and payment tools. These functions largely stem from their pegged fiat currency. However, the unique fast confirmation and programmable features of stablecoins make their efficiency in cross-border transactions and settlements far superior to traditional SWIFT systems. Currently, the annual trading volume of stablecoins is already twice that of a well-known payment network.

Looking back at the first wave of stablecoin development from 2018 to 2019, many projects focused too much on obtaining licenses and asset management, while neglecting the importance of liquidity network effects and user experience. As a result, most stablecoin projects, except for a few, failed to achieve success.

In the current second wave, due to changes in the regulatory environment, project parties have shifted their focus from obtaining licenses to expanding asset scale, enhancing liquidity network effects, and improving user experience. Besides some stablecoin projects launched by large financial institutions, a large number of innovative stablecoin projects will also emerge in the market.

For ordinary investors, the stablecoin space currently offers two main investment opportunities: one is to participate in yield farming of decentralized CDP stablecoin protocols, and the other is to focus on stablecoin infrastructure projects. The latter is relatively easier for ordinary investors to understand and participate in.

Stablecoin infrastructure projects are mainly divided into two categories: one category provides liquidity support, while the other is dedicated to developing new application scenarios for stablecoins. These projects provide important support for the development of the stablecoin ecosystem and may become key drivers of the stablecoin market in the future.