Money & Finance › Currencies, the dollar & crypto › Stablecoins: crypto tokens pegged to a currency
USD Coin (USDC) and its issuer, Circle
Since 2018· Asset or instrument
Fact, law or dataA rule, statute, definition or measured number.
USDC is the second-largest dollar stablecoin, about $75 billion in 2026, issued by Circle, a US company listed on the NYSE.
See it on the Money & Finance map →How it works
Circle and Coinbase launched USDC in 2018; Circle took full control in 2023. Reserves sit in bank cash and the Circle Reserve Fund, a BlackRock-managed government money market fund, with monthly attestations by Deloitte. Circle earns the interest and shares a large part with Coinbase for distribution. It is licensed under Europe's MiCA rules, and in December 2025 won conditional OCC approval for a national trust bank. Circle shares trade under the ticker CRCL.
Why it matters
It is the regulated, US-based alternative to Tether, favored by institutions and payment firms. Its earnings rise and fall with short-term interest rates.
Facts, rules and data
Monthly reserve reports, Circle's SEC filings since its June 2025 IPO, and public on-chain supply data.
Debates and risks
Whether the no-interest rule and future rate cuts will squeeze a business model that depends almost entirely on reserve yield.
Connections (3)
▸USD Coin (USDC) and its issuer, Circle competes with Tether (USDT): the largest dollar stablecoinFact, law or data
The connection
They are the two dominant dollar stablecoins, together about 85% of supply. Tether is bigger and offshore, strongest in emerging markets and exchange trading. Circle sells USDC as the regulated US choice for institutions and payments. Rules help Circle in Europe, where MiCA pushed exchanges to delist USDT; Tether answered US rules with USAT.
When and why
Competing since 2018; in 2026 USDT held about 60% of supply and USDC about 24%.
How we know
On-chain supply data and trackers such as DefiLlama show their market shares over time.
Debates and risks
Whether GENIUS licensing shifts US users toward USDC or USAT, and whether bank-issued stablecoins crowd out both.
▸USD Coin (USDC) and its issuer, Circle listed on the NYSE in a 2025 Initial public offerings (IPOs)Fact, law or data
The connection
Circle's shares began trading on the New York Stock Exchange on June 5, 2025, priced at $31, above its marketed range, raising about $1.1 billion. The stock closed its first day near $83, up about 168%. Public investors can now own a stablecoin business whose profits track short-term interest rates.
When and why
New York, June 2025, six weeks before the GENIUS Act became law; ticker CRCL.
How we know
Circle's SEC registration statement and NYSE trading records.
Debates and risks
Whether Circle's valuation holds as rates fall and as it keeps sharing revenue with distributors such as Coinbase.
▸USD Coin (USDC) and its issuer, Circle briefly lost its peg in Silicon Valley Bank collapse (2023)Fact, law or data
The connection
On March 10, 2023 Circle disclosed that $3.3 billion of its roughly $40 billion in USDC reserves was stuck at the failed Silicon Valley Bank. Holders rushed to sell, and USDC fell to about 87 cents. It recovered to $1 within days, once regulators guaranteed all SVB deposits.
When and why
March 10–13, 2023; Circle, SVB, the FDIC and crypto exchanges.
How we know
Circle's statements, market price data, and the joint Treasury, Fed and FDIC announcement of March 12, 2023.
Debates and risks
What would have happened without the government guarantee, since USDC holders themselves had no deposit insurance.