The firm behind the popular USD Coin (USDC), Circle, went public with a significant debut on June 5 on the New York Stock Exchange. Trading under the ticker CRCL, the private equity firm Circle opened at $31 but quickly spiked and closed at $82 on its debut day, representing a massive 167% gain for the stock.
The company’s IPO garnered US$1.05 billion, topping the initial pitch. Investor interest in the Circle IPO led to a market capitalization of approximately $6.8 billion pre-trading and $18 billion afterward with the increase in share offering from 24 million shares to 34 million shares.
This listing of a stablecoin issuer is the first major public listing in crypto and the most significant since the IPO of Coinbase in 2021. Circle’s success is also indicative of the growing institutional appetite for businesses that align with crypto. Major investment firms were keen to take large stakes in the company, and BlackRock was thinking about a 10% stake.
Jeremy Allaire and Sean Neville co-founded Circle in 2013 to bridge traditional finance and digital assets. Circle’s goal is universal crypto adoption to diversify future systems that drive money and payments. With a market cap now surpassing $62 billion, its USDC stablecoin is currently the second-largest in the world, while its euro-pegged EURC is also gaining traction.
The success of the IPO comes amidst a friendlier regulatory climate for crypto firms in the US. The present administration is showing ideological support for the growth of digital asset innovation, prompting other crypto companies to consider going public.
However, the event wasn’t without controversy. Jeff Dorman, who serves as the CIO of Arca, along with being an early investor in Circle, slammed the company for its low allocation in the IPO. Even if the post was taken down afterward, it did bring to the forefront tensions between early crypto-native investors and the other financial markets.
Even though there has been criticism about Circle’s public listing, it’s a signal of how far crypto has come and where it’s going. The company recently launched the Circle Payments Network to facilitate real-time settlements across the globe using USDC. This underscores Circle’s mission of connecting blockchain to real-world financial services.
Conclusion
Circle’s launch on the NYSE marks a clear inflection point for crypto-based IPOs. The world is now geared to accept stablecoins as a financial tool. Improvements in regulatory clarity and an increase in institutional interest may result in Circle’s listing, which may encourage other crypto firms to go public and engage in global finance with digital assets.
