Stablecoins are... 

a special type of cryptocurrency whose exchange rate is pegged to a fiat currency (usually the US dollar), thereby minimizing volatility and serving as a more stable instrument in the world of digital assets?

🤩 USDT (Tether) is the largest stablecoin with a capitalization of more than $170 billion, pegged to the dollar 1:1. Produced by Tether Limited (Tether Holdings group, headquartered in El Salvador). Tether Limited claims that each USDT issued is fully backed by reserves (cash, US Treasuries and other assets), however, a full independent audit of reserves has not been conducted to date — only periodic confirmation reports are published. 

❗️ This is a fundamental difference from Bitcoin: BTC has no issuer and no collateral, while a stablecoin is an obligation of a specific company.

🤩 USDC is the second largest stablecoin, pegged 1:1 to the dollar. Issued by Circle Internet Financial (USA, Boston), a regulated issuer licensed in 46 states. USDC reserves (cash and short-term US Treasuries) are held at Bank of New York Mellon and managed by BlackRock. Monthly reserve reports are verified by Deloitte. In terms of transparency and regulation, USDC is significantly ahead of USDT, making it the preferred stablecoin for institutional participants.