Tether Briefly Surpasses Ethereum in Market Value

Tether briefly surpassed Ethereum as the second-largest cryptocurrency by market value on Friday, after Ether's price sank to its lowest point this year. The shift was due to a sharp selloff that dragged Ether down about 5.2% over 24 hours to $1,510 on Coinbase.

This marked a rare moment when Tether's supply edged near $186 billion, just above Ether's market capitalization of roughly $185 billion. However, the lead was short-lived as dip buyers returned and ETH reclaimed its second-place position near $189 billion within hours.

The rotation reflects growing demand for stablecoins during times of uncertainty in the market. Andri Fauzan Adziima, research lead at Bitrue Research Institute, described this rotation as a 'textbook flight to safety'.