Circle Stock Jumps Double Digits as It Reports 72% Rise in USDC Circulation
Circle’s USDC grew 72% in Q4 as transaction volume soared and CRCL stock popped on bullish AI and payments commentary.
By Stacy JonesEdited by Andrew HaywardFeb 25, 2026Feb 25, 20263 min read
In brief
- USDC circulation rose 72% year-on-year to $75.3B.
- Transaction volume jumped 247% to $11.9T.
- CRCL shares climbed as much as 20% after earnings.
Stablecoin issuer Circle saw USDC circulation grow 72% year-on-year to $75.3 billion in the fourth quarter. The company also reported that transaction volume reached $11.9 trillion, an increase of 247%.
USDC market capitalization has wavered slightly since the end of last year, dipping as low as $70 billion at the start of February. But it has since rebounded to nearly $75 billion, according to crypto price aggregator CoinGecko.
Circle released its report early Wednesday morning and had its earnings call scheduled for 8 a.m. New York time. In pre-market trading, CRCL shares jumped 14%. After the opening bell, the gains jumped to 20%, with the stock changing hands for $73.24 at the time of writing.
"The print reinforces continued USDC adoption despite a softer crypto backdrop and should support a strong positive stock reaction today," wrote Clear Street analysts Owen Lau and Nikhil Vijay in a note shared with Decrypt.
CEO Jeremy Allaire opened the company's earnings call saying he believes Circle will grow in tandem with the artificial intelligence industry, and "drive the greatest acceleration of economic activity we've ever seen in human history."
"Not only will our global economic system become more internet-native, but it will also become dramatically more automated," he said. "We are entering a world where, in my view, likely tens or hundreds of billions of AI agents will interact and perform economic functions over the internet."
He added later that the company has been building systems that support agentic payments.
"In fact, we just went into testnet release of a new capability, the Circle Gateway, that allows for agents to autonomously and programmatically automate cross chain USDC transactions with a transaction cost of $0.00001," Allaire said.
The company saw its revenue and reserve income reach $770 million in Q4, a 77% increase from the previous year.
Circle saw a net loss from continuing operations reach $70 million in 2025, noting that it was significantly impacted by $424 million worth of stock-based compensation tied to vesting conditions of the company's initial public offering.
Circle made its debut on the New York Stock Exchange last June and was so popular with investors that NYSE halted trading three times within the first hour. But the company saw its momentum slow in 2025 as the Federal Reserve lowered interest rates and investors fretted that it would impact interest earned on the cash reserves that back USDC stablecoins.
