Key Takeaways
Circle Internet Financial, the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, raised US$222 million for its new institutional Layer 1 blockchain, Arc, giving the network a US$3 billion fully diluted valuation. The company said the presale of its ARC token drew backing from investors including a16z crypto, BlackRock, ARK Invest, and Standard Chartered Ventures.
A stablecoin is a type of cryptocurrency whose value is pegged to another asset, typically a fiat currency like the U.S. dollar. As the issuer of USDC, the second-largest stablecoin, Circle plays a critical role in the digital asset economy, and the launch of Arc represents a significant expansion of its infrastructure.
"Circle’s first quarter reflected strong execution against a much bigger opportunity: the rapid convergence of AI platforms and economic operating systems into a new internet stack," Jeremy Allaire, Co-founder, CEO and Chairman of Circle, said in a statement. "We are building trusted infrastructure for AI-native economic activity and a more programmable internet financial system."
The private placement, conducted under an exemption from the US Securities Act of 1933, saw the sale of 740 million ARC tokens at a price of $0.30 each. According to a whitepaper released by the company, the ARC token will support governance, security, and network operations on the new blockchain, which is designed specifically for stablecoin-native finance.
Circle has set a fixed initial supply of 10 billion ARC tokens. Approximately 60 percent is allocated to the ecosystem for developers and network growth, 25 percent is reserved for Circle's own development and staking, and the remaining 15 percent will be held as a long-term reserve to ensure stability.
The fundraising follows a strong financial quarter for Circle. The company reported total revenue and reserve income of $694 million in the first quarter of 2026, a 20 percent increase year-on-year. The growth was fueled by a 28 percent rise in USDC in circulation to $77.0 billion and a 263 percent surge in on-chain transaction volume to $21.5 trillion.
However, net income from continuing operations fell 15 percent to $55 million. The company attributed the decline to a 76 percent climb in operating expenses to $242 million, driven primarily by post-IPO stock-based compensation and continued investment in infrastructure. Still, adjusted EBITDA, a measure of underlying business performance, rose 24 percent to $151 million.
The launch of Arc is part of Circle's broader strategy to provide infrastructure for what it calls "AI-native economic activity." Alongside the new blockchain, the company introduced Circle CLI, Agent Wallets, and an Agent Marketplace to support agent-driven activity across different blockchains.
The Arc blockchain initially uses permissioned validators but plans to transition to a more decentralized proof-of-stake model. This move, combined with the new agent-focused tools, suggests Circle is positioning Arc as a foundational layer for automated, AI-driven financial services built on USDC. Shares of Circle (CRCL) were up around 3 percent in premarket trading to $116.7 following the announcement.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
