Jeremy Allaire, co-founder and CEO of Circle, wants his company to become a core part of the internet’s infrastructure.
“I hope that we’re part of operating a major new infrastructure layer of the internet,” Jeremy said on Yahoo Finance’s Opening Bid Unfiltered podcast. “That we’re building something that is running a substantial portion of this new economy.”
Jeremy sees stablecoins and asset tokenization dominating the next decade of money. “In 10 years… these new forms of money (stablecoin money and tokenizations more broadly) are a much larger part of the total value in the economic system,” he said, adding that the system should be “more global, more innovative, more inclusive, and higher velocity.”
Circle targets global money movement with USDC and Arc
Since its IPO on June 5, Circle has tried to prove it belongs in the financial big leagues. The timing lined up perfectly with President Donald Trump signing the GENIUS Act, a law that outlines rules for asset-backed digital tokens like USDC. The bill handed stablecoin firms legal clarity, giving Circle a major tailwind.
Circle’s main income source is interest on short-term U.S. Treasuries that back USDC. And that model paid off. In Q3, the firm posted $740 million in revenue and reserve income, up 66% year-over-year. Net income spiked 202% compared to last year.
But that didn’t stop the stock from falling. Shares are down 57% in the last six months, dragged by crypto’s slump. Jeremy says that’s a mistake. Circle, he argued, isn’t a crypto company. “We don’t fit in any particular box,” he said.
Despite the dip, Wall Street is holding the line. Most analysts still rate Circle a Buy, according to Yahoo Finance.
JPMorgan analyst Ken Worthington wrote, “Stablecoins are continuing to make their way into mainstream financial services, with USDC a leading stablecoin and Circle a leading partner.” He added that Circle is moving more USDC onto its own platform, giving it more control and more room to grow.
Jeremy’s bigger bet is on Arc, Circle’s new Layer 1 blockchain. The company launched it this fall to handle on-chain economic activity faster and at scale. The project already has big-name partners: BlackRock, Visa, and Amazon Web Services.
In December, Circle also signed a multiyear deal with Intuit, the maker of TurboTax. That deal brings USDC into the hands of millions of American taxpayers and small business owners.
Payment cards and settlement rails shift toward stablecoins
While Jeremy is pushing tokenized dollars into global finance, others are following close behind. Payment companies are racing to launch stablecoin-linked cards.
These let users spend USDC or other tokens like regular dollars. The merchant still gets paid in local currency. But underneath, everything moves via blockchain.
Cross River Bank and Highnote are now rolling out cards that settle using stablecoins. According to Highnote’s Cosentino, this tech is what younger startups want. “Long term, stablecoins will become a critical rail,” he said. “A no-brainer capability that will be increasingly adopted.”
