Circle, Issuer of USDC, Moves Forward with IPO... Valuation at 7.8 Trillion Won

Circle, the issuer of the stablecoin USDC, is moving forward with an initial public offering (IPO).

Reuters Yonhap News

According to CNBC, a U.S. business media outlet, on May 27 (local time), Circle announced in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that it plans to offer 24 million shares of common stock to the public. Of these, 9.6 million shares will be newly issued by the company, while 14.4 million shares will be sold by existing shareholders. The company expects the offering price to be between $24 and $26 per share. Based on this, the company's estimated valuation stands at $5.65 billion (approximately 7.8 trillion won).

Currently, about $62 billion worth of USDC stablecoins issued by Circle are in circulation. This accounts for approximately 27% of the total stablecoin market. While Tether still holds a dominant market share at 67%, USDC's market capitalization has increased by 40% this year, whereas Tether's has grown by only 10%.

After the U.S. Senate passed a stablecoin regulation bill on May 19, the market has increasingly viewed stablecoins as being recognized within the institutional financial system. Stablecoins, which are typically pegged to the value of the U.S. dollar or the euro, have so far been used mainly for cryptocurrency trading or as collateral in decentralized finance (DeFi). However, they have recently gained popularity as a means for fast and low-cost cross-border dollar transactions. In particular, there is a growing recognition of their important role in maintaining the dominance of the U.S. dollar and supporting demand for U.S. Treasury bonds, which has highlighted their geopolitical significance.

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