Zakat on Stablecoins (USDT/USDC)

Short answer: Stablecoins are effectively digital dollars and take the ruling of cash currency. Once nisab and hawl are met, 2.5% zakat is obligatory on the full value — there is no real scholarly hesitation here since their value is pegged to fiat currency. Details: The reasoning by which paper money was ruled to stand in the place of gold and silver (Shaykh Ibn Baz; the Permanent Committee) applies even more directly to stablecoins. Add them to your cash, bank balances and other crypto on your zakat day. Evidence: Quran 9:34-35 (the severe warning for hoarding without paying its due); Sahih Muslim 987 (the hoarder branded with plates of fire); Sahih al-Bukhari 1454 (2.5%). Caution: Putting stablecoins in interest-bearing 'earn/lending' programs is riba (Quran 2:275). Such interest may not be kept; if received, rid yourself of it by giving it to the poor without expecting reward — it does not count as zakat. For complex individual cases, consult a qualified scholar.