USD Coin, commonly abbreviated as USDC, is a stablecoin that is anchored to the U.S. dollar. Stablecoins are a type of cryptocurrency that seek to maintain a stable price, and USDC is pegged 1:1 to the U.S. dollar. USDC has been developed in cooperation between two major technology firms; Circle, a company that acts as a payment and trading platform for digital currencies, and Coinbase, an online platform for buying and selling digital currencies.
The purpose of USDC is to provide a cryptocurrency that is more stable than Bitcoin, but with all the benefits of a digital asset. SinceUSDC is backed by the U.S. dollar, its value is not as volatile as other cryptocurrencies and it can be used by traders, investors and consumers alike.
As with any currency, users have the ability to transfer and store their USDC within supported wallets and exchanges. When it comes to security, USDC uses a similar blockchain infrastructure as Ethereum. This uses an open source protocol called ERC-20 which provides transparency over transactions, as well as allowing users to integrate the currency with other smart contracts and decentralized applications (dapps).
Furthermore, due to its stability and ease of use, USDC has been adopted by a number of large companies and may become more widely used in the near future.