Circle Internet Group, a prominent issuer of the USDC stablecoin, has submitted a filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to publicly list on the New York Stock Exchange. Set to trade under the ticker symbol “CRCL,” the Class A common stock will go public sometime in late April, as per its S-1 registration statement filed on the first of the month. However, the number of shares to be offered or the initial public offering price wasn’t specified in the prospectus.
Despite experiencing an unstable financial trajectory over the past three years, Circle reported a healthy revenue growth in 2024 with earnings of $1.67 billion. This figure marks a 16% increase compared to the previous year. However, the company also noted a 41.8% decrease in net income at $155.6 million relative to 2023.
It’s worth noting that a substantial portion of Circle’s expenses, totalling nearly $908 million, was paid to Coinbase, its main distribution partner. This is to facilitate the distribution of USDC on the cryptocurrency exchange. Interestingly, most of Circle’s revenue, over 99% to be exact, was derived from its stablecoin reserves, a financial strategy that included holding yield-bearing Treasury bills. The company’s assets also include a variety of other cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ether, and a number of other altcoins.
This public listing marks Circle’s third attempt to go public after two failed efforts via a SPAC merger and confidential filing with the SEC in 2021 and 2024 respectively. Circle also recently became the first-ever stablecoin issuer to receive regulatory approval in Japan.
Lastly, it’s important to note that Circle’s stablecoin, USDC, boasts the second largest market capitalization at $60.1 billion, only coming second to Tether. Other crypto companies are also preparing to go public, including the crypto exchange Kraken and blockchain security firm BitGo.