Glossary
Depeg
A market price that moves away from the intended reference value.
Reviewed as part of Stablecoin Reserves and Depeg Risk, using the primary references listed below. Updated 2026-07-19.
Plain-English meaning
Depeg is used here to describe a market price that moves away from the intended reference value. In the daily board, the word is grouped by the role it performs rather than by spelling or market popularity.
You may encounter it in a product interface, technical document, risk report, policy paper, or market dashboard. The term is included for recognition and comparison, not as a product recommendation.
Important boundary
A depeg is an observed outcome, not a diagnosis of its cause.
When this word appears in a report, identify the mechanism being described before treating the label as a conclusion. Similar terms can point to different causes, controls, or outcomes.
Why it belongs with Stablecoin Reserves
These terms focus on how reserve assets, audits, redemption, and parity claims support a peg.
When solving the puzzle, compare the job this term performs with nearby cards. A correct group usually shares a function, risk type, workflow, or market structure rather than simply sharing similar wording.
Where you might see it
You might encounter this term while reading educational explainers, product documentation, risk disclosures, market dashboards, or beginner guides. Always separate vocabulary learning from financial decision-making.
Reading cue
Reading a reserve claim without stopping at the headline
Use the full guide's applied scenario to ask where Depeg enters the process, what evidence supports it, and which nearby concept it could be confused with.
Read the complete applied scenarioNearby concepts
Compare before you memorize
Reserve
Assets held to support redemption obligations.
Reserve size is not the same as reserve liquidity or asset quality.Collateral
Assets pledged against a loan, position, or token design.
Collateral may be volatile and overcollateralized; reserves may be cash-like claims.Redemption
The process for exchanging a token for the referenced asset or value.
Exchange trading is secondary-market activity, not necessarily issuer redemption.Knowledge check
Check the distinction
Why can a large reserve still be difficult to use during stress?
The assets may be illiquid, concentrated, legally restricted, or slow to settle. Headline value alone does not show how quickly redemptions can be met.
Source trail
References behind this explanation
These references support the surrounding guide and concept boundaries. Open the full source when you need the original technical or policy context.
Primary policy framework for governance, redemption rights, stabilization, and risk management.
Bank for International SettlementsStablecoins and the future of moneyCurrent institutional analysis of stablecoin structure, reserve claims, and monetary-system risks.