The issuer of the USDC stablecoin, Circle, raised $1.1 billion during the initial public offering (IPO). The firm sold 34 million shares at $31 each, which is above the initial price range of $24–26. This gave Circle a market valuation of $6.1 billion based on the number of shares outstanding.
Fully diluted value, taking into account options and warrants, could reach $8.1 billion. The mentioned instruments are valid for 30 days and are intended for the issuance of an additional 5.1 million Class A common shares.
Of the total offering volume of 14.8 million shares, Circle sold 14.8 million shares itself, while the remaining 19.2 million were sold by shareholders, including co-founder and CEO Jeremy Allaire.
Increased investor interest allowed the company to raise the initial offering volume from 24 to 32 million shares. Demand exceeded supply by more than 25 times, Bloomberg sources reported. This signals a growing institutional interest in stablecoins against the backdrop of expected regulation in this segment in the U.S., analysts believe.
The largest participants in the deal were investment giants BlackRock and ARK Invest. The latter expressed its intention to purchase shares worth up to $150 million, while BlackRock acquired about 10% of the IPO volume.
Additionally, BlackRock manages a cash fund where Circle places up to 90% of USDC reserves. As of the end of May, the volume of USDC in circulation was $61 billion, and Circle's market share was 29%, according to Bloomberg data.
The offering took place on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker CRCL. The IPO was organized by JPMorgan, Citigroup, and Goldman Sachs, and trading, according to the press release, will start on June 5, 2025.