Circle | Crypto

Circle's $222 million ARC token presale has given Wall Street a new way to value the USDC issuer, while raising a harder question for one of crypto’s most profitable alliances. On May 11, Circle said investors led by a16z Crypto backed the presale of ARC, the native token for Arc, its planned public blockchain for […] The post Circle adds $3 billion Wall Street Arc token risking an uncomfortable rivalry with Coinbase appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Circle shares surged as analysts pointed to expanding stablecoin use cases and forecast significant upside as USDC adoption continues to gain traction. Shares of stablecoin issuer Circle surged Monday after the company reported mostly upbeat earnings and disclosed that a major crypto venture capital fund had purchased $222 million worth of its blockchain tokens. Circle’s shares rose almost 16% to close at $131.76, its highest level since March 18, according to Yahoo Finance. CRCL stock gave back some of its gains in initial after-hours activity. The gain extends Circle’s strong run in 2026. Shares are now up 66% year to date, giving the company a market capitalization of roughly $35 billion. Read more

Circle raised $222 million in an ARC token presale led by a16z Crypto as Q1 revenue hit $694 million and USDC circulation climbed to $77 billion. Circle Internet Group agreed to sell 740 million ARC tokens for $222 million in a private placement led by a16z Crypto, valuing the Arc blockchain network at $3 billion on a fully diluted basis. The New York Stock Exchange-listed issuer of the USDC stablecoin disclosed the token presale Monday alongside its first-quarter 2026 results, which showed higher revenue and reserve income but lower net income. The round was led by a16z Crypto and backed by a consortium including BlackRock, Apollo Funds, ARK Invest, Bullish, General Catalyst, Haun Ventures, Intercontinental Exchange, IDG Capital, Janus Henderson Investors, Marshall Wace, SBI Group and Standard Chartered Ventures. Read more

Circle raised $222 million for its Arc blockchain token at a $3 billion valuation, drawing backing from BlackRock, Apollo and Bullish.

The new tools let AI agents hold wallets, discover services and make programmable USDC payments across blockchain networks. Circle launched a suite of tools designed to let AI agents hold wallets, discover services and make programmable payments using USDC, as companies race to build financial infrastructure for autonomous software systems. The products, released under Circle’s new “Agent Stack,” include agent-focused wallets, a command-line developer interface, a marketplace for agentic services and a nanopayments protocol for machine-to-machine transactions. Circle said the nanopayments infrastructure supports gas-free USDC (USDC) transfers as small as $0.000001 and is designed for high-frequency autonomous payment flows between software systems. Read more

Circle and Tether are going to make it harder for stablecoins to feel like money, said Ben O'Neill, head of money movement at Bridge.

The USDC Bridge adds to Circle's Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol, which often sees over $500 million worth of USDC transfers each day. Stablecoin issuer Circle has launched USDC Bridge, a new user interface built on top of the Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol (CCTP) that seeks to simplify native cross-chain transfers of the USDC stablecoin. On Friday, Circle’s USDC X account said the bridge allows users to move the USDC (USDC) stablecoin in a “predictable, transparent way,” citing a native burn-and-mint transfer mechanism and no bridge complexities. Gas fees will be handled automatically, fees will be shown upfront, and live status updates will be provided throughout the transfer, Circle added. Read more

USDT stablecoin issuer Tether has stepped in to anchor a massive recovery plan for Drift Protocol, the Solana-based decentralized exchange (DEX) that was crippled by a $286 million exploit earlier this month. However, the rescue package includes a potent commercial string that could challenge Circle's dominance of USDC on the Solana blockchain. According to the recovery plan, Drift […] The post Tether uses $127M Drift rescue to challenge Circle’s grip on Solana payments appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Circle’s Jeremy Allaire sees “tremendous” room for a yuan stablecoin, despite China banning most private yuan tokens and pushing its CBDC to challenge US dollar stablecoins. Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire says there is “tremendous opportunity” for a yuan-backed stablecoin, despite Beijing’s formal moves against most private renminbi-linked stablecoins and commitment to its own digital yuan.  Speaking to Reuters in Hong Kong on Thursday, Allaire framed stablecoins as a way for China to “export” its currency by making global payments easier, as digital money becomes more tightly woven into trade and finance, and said the country could roll out a yuan-backed stablecoin within three to five years.  Geopolitical rivalry over money is increasingly being waged in code as much as in central bank policy, and Allaire’s comments sharpen a deeper question: Can governments that clamp down on private digital currencies afford to shun them if they want to compete globally? Read more

Circle defends its hands-off approach to freezing funds as critics point to hundreds of millions in losses tied to delayed action.

The stablecoin issuer faces pressure after a stock downgrade and Drift Protocol exploit fallout, raising concerns over USDC exposure, crypto regulation and market risk. Shares of stablecoin issuer Circle Internet Group fell sharply Thursday following a Wall Street downgrade and reports tied to a legal probe connected to a recent crypto exploit. Circle’s stock price closed near session lows in Nasdaq trading, falling 9.9% to $85.10. The decline adds to a broader slide in the company’s shares, which are down nearly 24% over the past month and about 43% over the past six months, reflecting continued volatility after Circle’s high-profile public debut last year. Read more

Circle’s upcoming Arc blockchain is gearing up for quantum resilience, revealing a multi-step roadmap to prepare for the looming threat.

Circle’s Arc blockchain said users will be able to create wallets that withstand future quantum computer attacks from day one.

Circle’s plan to make Arc quantum-resistant comes amid increasing fears that "Q-Day" may come sooner than anticipated. Stablecoin issuer Circle has released a post-quantum security roadmap for its layer-1 blockchain, Arc, aiming to implement solutions across all layers of the network’s tech stack. Circle said on Thursday that it is planning a phased implementation, starting with quantum-proof wallets and signatures when Arc launches on mainnet. This feature will be opt-in, the company noted, while adding that solutions at the validator level and surrounding infrastructure will be implemented later on. “Quantum resilience cannot live only in research papers, exploratory pilots, or distant roadmap slides. It has to show up in the infrastructure,” Circle said. Read more

Circle's biggest selling point may be becoming its biggest liability. On-chain investigator ZachXBT's “Circle Files” allege that the USDC issuer has inconsistently applied its freeze powers. Circle was too slow in 15 cases involving more than $420 million in allegedly illicit funds since 2022, yet broad enough to sweep 16 operational business wallets in a […] The post Circle’s USDC freeze power faces fresh scrutiny after wallets were blocked while stolen funds moved appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Prominent blockchain sleuth ZachXBT alleged faster action by Circle could have limited crypto losses, but freezing asset without legal authorization carries legal risks.

Circle had several hours or days to freeze illicit USDC funds in many of the 15 cases presented, but failed to act, according to ZachXBT. Onchain detective ZachXBT claims that Circle, the issuer of the USDC (USDC) stablecoin, has failed to freeze or blacklist about $420 million in illicit fund flows since 2022. Circle can freeze illicit funds and blacklist wallet addresses, but either took “minimal” action to freeze illicit flows or failed to act in 15 separate hack-and-fraud cases, including those linked to North Korean (DPRK) state-affiliated hackers, ZachXBT said.  The stablecoin issuer allegedly failed to freeze $9 million in USDC from the GMX decentralized exchange (DEX) hack in July 2025, and blacklisted wallets linked to the $200 million Cetus DEX hack in May 2025 after USDC was converted into Ether (ETH), according to ZackXBT. Read more

Stablecoin issuer Circle is facing mounting scrutiny from blockchain researchers after millions of USD Coin (USDC) were stolen and flowed unimpeded through its proprietary bridge during the $285 million exploit of the Solana-based Drift Protocol. The inaction during the April 1 attack, which is now the largest decentralized finance (DeFi) hack of 2026, stands in […] The post Circle under fire as $230M in stolen USDC flows unblocked days after freezing legitimate accounts appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Circle, known for issuing stablecoins including USDC and EURC, is expanding into the Bitcoin space, targeting institutional users. Stablecoin issuer Circle said it plans to launch its own version of a wrapped Bitcoin, which would put it against incumbents Coinbase and BitGo as it targets institutional users.  The asset, called cirBTC and announced on Thursday, is set to launch on Ethereum, backed 1:1 by bitcoin (BTC) and aimed at over-the-counter desks, market makers and lending protocols.  Circle said the asset is designed to provide institutions with a “highly secure and neutral version of wrapped BTC.” Read more

Drift said a durable nonce attack helped drive its Solana exploit, as critics questioned why stolen USDC moved for hours without a freeze. Drift Protocol, a Solana-based decentralized exchange (DEX), confirmed Thursday it was targeted in a roughly $280 million exploit, describing it as a “highly sophisticated operation.” The platform took to X on to share its findings from a preliminary investigation, saying that the attackers exploited Solana’s durable nonces, a mechanism enabling pre-signed transactions, to seize control and drain funds. The protocol had earlier said it was experiencing an active attack and suspended deposits and withdrawals while coordinating with security firms, bridges and exchanges. The attack began on Wednesday, with the theft involving multiple assets, including Circle’s USDC (USDC) and various altcoins. Onchain data later showed that the exploiter swapped the majority of assets into USDC, with the funds later bridged to Ethereum. Read more