Bitwise’s Rasmussen sees stablecoins growing to $3 trillion-$5 trillion

Bitwise Head of Research Ryan Rasmussen said the stablecoin market is expected to grow from about $300 billion to $3 trillion-$5 trillion, while investors are underestimating Circle’s growth potential, according to a CoinDesk interview. Rasmussen said Circle is well positioned based on its existing market share and stands to benefit as U.S. stablecoin regulation takes clearer shape. He added that payments infrastructure will become Circle’s second business, with the company building infrastructure to facilitate payments in a stablecoin-based financial system. In five years, Circle is likely to be not only a major player in stablecoins but also in payments, Rasmussen said. He also discussed OpenUSD, or OUSD, from OpenStandard, which includes more than 140 payments and crypto companies such as Visa and BlackRock, and said it does not pose a major threat to Circle. Projects like OpenUSD show growing interest from established players, he said, adding that Circle can still expand even as new competitors enter the market. Rasmussen said Circle’s strength lies in its ability to keep advancing its business as the regulated stablecoin market develops.