Adjusted transaction volume of stablecoins soared almost 33% in August

Adjusted transaction volume of stablecoins skyrocketed in August, reaching an all-time high of $866.2 billion. 

According to The Block Research, the adjusted on-chain volume of stablecoins increased by 32.9%, from $655.2 billion to an all-time high of $866.2 billion in August. The increase was likely attributable to the sanctioning of Tornado Cash by the U.S. Treasury, per the report. 

Tornado Cash is a cryptocurrency mixing service that allows users to obscure the details of their transactions. In August it was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury, with the regulator adding it and 44 associated Ethereum and USDC wallets to its Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list.

The Treasury’s reasoning was that being hackers had been laundering funds through the mixing service. At the time, a senior Treasury official said that it would not be the last action against Tornado Cash. 

An effect of the sanctions may be seen in stablecoin velocity. This is a measure of the daily transaction volume divided by the current supply of stablecoins. 

Following the sanctions, stablecoin velocity increased for DAI, USDC and USDT — all other stablecoins decreased. The Block Research again attributed this mostly to the Tornado Cash sanctions. 

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