Year-end corporate foreign exchange settlement rush is approaching, and this time window often exposes some interesting market issues. Small and medium-sized enterprises involved in international trade and cross-border operations face an unavoidable dilemma every year—how to convert the incoming US dollars back into RMB. The problem is, onshore RMB exchange quotas are tight, and relying solely on official channels is far from enough. So many companies turn to USDT as an alternative, seeking strong liquidity and cross-border flexibility.

But here’s an ironic phenomenon: USDT is trading at a negative premium. Originally chosen to avoid exchange restrictions, it now comes with a cost for holding it. What does a stablecoin premium inversion mean? In plain language, it means the "dollars" you hold are actually shrinking. This raises a critical question—if holding stablecoins is starting to lose money, how should enterprises rethink their cross-border capital allocation strategies? Should they continue to trust USDT’s liquidity advantage to offset the negative premium costs, or reevaluate the feasibility of other options? This is not just a technical issue but a practical, cash flow-related business decision.