Circle Posts $21.5T USDC Volume; Q1 Profit Falls 15%

Circle reported $21.5 trillion in USDC on‑chain transactions in the first quarter of 2026, a 263% increase from a year earlier, while net income from continuing operations dropped 15% to $55 million. The company attributed the profit decline to higher stock‑based compensation and investments tied to its Arc network and Agent Stack.

USDC captured 63% of stablecoin transaction volume during the quarter, according to Circle’s posted figures. Total USDC in circulation was $77.0 billion, up 28% year over year. USDC held on platform rose 254% to $13.7 billion, representing 17.2% of the total supply at quarter end. The number of meaningful wallets holding more than $10 in USDC increased 47% to 7.2 million.

Circle cited increased use of USDC in programmable and corporate workflows. The company reported treasury software integrations and continued use of USDC by prediction market platforms as examples of growing enterprise activity. Research that filters out wash and arbitrage flows showed USDC overtook USDT in adjusted on‑chain volume during the quarter.

Total revenue and reserve income rose 20% year over year to $694 million. Reserve income increased 17% to $653 million. Adjusted EBITDA, a non‑GAAP measure that excludes certain items, grew 24% to $151 million.

Reported net income from continuing operations declined to $55 million from $65 million in Q1 2025. Stock‑based compensation rose to $51.8 million from $12.7 million a year earlier as post‑IPO equity awards and related payroll taxes were recognized. Operating expenses increased 76% to $242 million as Circle invested in product, distribution and infrastructure. Adjusted operating expenses excluding stock‑based items increased 32% to $136 million.

Circle disclosed a $222 million presale of ARC tokens at a $3 billion fully diluted valuation and published a whitepaper outlining the token’s role in governance, security and network operations for its Arc Layer‑1. The company also launched the Agent Stack, a suite that combines a command‑line interface, agent wallets and an agent marketplace with its Nanopayments product to support autonomous agents transacting in USDC across chains and payment rails.

In market context, Tether remained the largest stablecoin by supply at about $189 billion and reported $1.04 billion in net profit for Q1. Circle’s share of stablecoin supply declined 62 basis points year over year to 28%. The company reaffirmed multi‑year USDC growth guidance of roughly 40% compound annual growth and projected full‑year 2026 adjusted operating expenses between $570 million and $585 million.

Jeremy Allaire, Circle co‑founder and chief executive, described the quarter as “strong execution against a much bigger opportunity: the rapid convergence of AI platforms and economic operating systems into a new internet stack.” Investors will look to Circle’s June Form 10‑Q and Arc’s mainnet timeline for additional details on capital allocation and network rollout.