News linked to both this project and an event.
Odaily. Bernstein stated in its latest research report that the newly reached compromise on stablecoin yields under the U.S. CLARITY Act is structurally beneficial for Circle and the USDC ecosystem.The report notes that the current version of the bill prohibits stablecoin issuers from paying interest to passive holders that is "economically equivalent" to bank deposits, but allows reward mechanisms tied to actual transaction, payment, and usage activities to continue. Bernstein believes this means Circle's current model, which relies on partners like Coinbase to provide USDC reward programs, will gain regulatory recognition, while also limiting the industry's ability to compete for market share through high yields.Bernstein points out that the bill effectively reinforces the positioning of stablecoins as "payment tools" rather than "deposit substitutes," helping to protect Circle's current business model that relies on reserve income. The firm maintains an "Outperform" rating for Circle with a $190 target price.Data shows that the total global supply of dollar-pegged stablecoins has surpassed $300 billion, with USDT and USDC collectively accounting for approximately 97% of the market share. Bernstein notes that USDC's share in on-chain payments and wallet transfers is steadily increasing, and its share of payments in the AI Agent payment protocol x402 has exceeded 99%.Additionally, Bernstein mentioned that Circle's ARC chain has cumulatively completed 244 million testnet transactions. The ARC token pre-sale previously raised $222 million, with investors including a16z crypto, Apollo Funds, ARK Invest, and BlackRock.However, the report also points out that the CLARITY Act still needs to complete multiple legislative procedures before it takes effect, including a 60-vote threshold in the full Senate and coordination with the House version. Polymarket currently estimates its probability of passage by 2026 at approximately 62%. (The Block)
According to The Block, research and brokerage firm Bernstein has maintained its “Outperform” rating on Circle Internet Group (CRCL), with a target price of $190—representing approximately 44% upside from Monday’s closing price of $131.76. Analysts led by Gautam Chhugani noted that Circle’s $222 million ARC token presale—completed at a fully diluted valuation of $3 billion—provides the company with near-term cushioning against a 11% sequential decline in reserve income driven by weakening interest rates.
According to @cryptounfolded, Circle has completed the Arc token presale, raising $222 million with a fully diluted valuation of $3 billion. The round was led by a16z, with participation from major institutions including BlackRock and Apollo. Arc is positioned as a public blockchain for institutional contracts, governance, and AI agents, using USDC as its underlying settlement currency. Circle will receive 25% of the tokens for validator rewards.
Circle has released its financial results for the first quarter of fiscal year 2026. The data shows that as of the end of the first quarter, the circulating supply of USDC reached $77 billion, a year-over-year increase of 28%; on-chain transaction volume for USDC in the first quarter reached $21.5 trillion, up 263% year-over-year.The financial report indicates that Circle's total revenue and reserve income for the first quarter was $694 million, a 20% increase year-over-year; adjusted EBITDA was $151 million, up 24% year-over-year; net profit was $55 million, a 15% decrease year-over-year.Additionally, Circle disclosed that its ARC Token pre-sale raised $222 million, with a fully diluted valuation of $3 billion. Participants included institutions such as a16z crypto, BlackRock, and ARK Invest. The company also announced the launch of the "Agent Stack" infrastructure for AI agent scenarios, including products like Agent Wallets and Agent Marketplace, designed to support AI agent payments and commercial activities based on USDC.