Stablecoins
Tokens designed to hold a stable price, usually pegged to a fiat currency — the different designs used to do that, how redemption works, and the real, documented risks of treating one as equivalent to cash.
7 guides in this category, ordered from beginner to advanced.
Stablecoins guides
What Are Stablecoins?
How stablecoins aim to track the value of another asset, and why that's useful.
5 min read · 20 related concepts
Fiat-Collateralized vs. Algorithmic Stablecoins
How different stablecoin designs try to maintain their peg, and why the mechanism matters.
6 min read · 10 related concepts
Risks of Holding Stablecoins
Real risks to understand before treating a stablecoin as equivalent to holding cash.
5 min read · 8 related concepts
How Stablecoin Redemption Actually Works
How exchanging a fiat-collateralized stablecoin back for its underlying reserve asset typically works.
5 min read · 3 related concepts
Why Stablecoins Depeg: Causes and Mechanics
The actual mechanisms that cause a stablecoin to lose its peg, and why some designs are more fragile than others.
7 min read · 12 related concepts
Central Bank Digital Currencies vs. Stablecoins: What's Actually Different
How a CBDC's issuance and control actually differ from a privately-issued stablecoin, beyond both being described as "digital money."
5 min read · 2 related concepts
Yield-Bearing Stablecoins Explained
How some stablecoins pass along yield from their backing reserves, and what that changes.
5 min read · 3 related concepts
Key terms in this category
Peg
Read the Peg glossary definition
Peg Stability Module (PSM)
Read the Peg Stability Module (PSM) glossary definition
Algorithmic Stablecoin
Read the Algorithmic Stablecoin glossary definition
Reserve Attestation
Read the Reserve Attestation glossary definition
Fiat-Collateralized Stablecoin
Read the Fiat-Collateralized Stablecoin glossary definition
Depeg
Read the Depeg glossary definition
Peg Arbitrage
Read the Peg Arbitrage glossary definition
Bank Run
Read the Bank Run glossary definition
Redemption Mechanism
Read the Redemption Mechanism glossary definition
Over-Collateralization
Read the Over-Collateralization glossary definition
Arbitrage
Read the Arbitrage glossary definition
Soft Peg
Read the Soft Peg glossary definition