Circle Discloses USDC Settlements Exceeding $36 Trillion in First Half of 2026

Circle announced on October 16 that the on-chain settlement amount of USDC exceeded $36 trillion in the first half of 2026, with minting and redemption scales exceeding $315 billion during the same period, averaging about $1.7 billion per day.

As of June, USDC accounted for approximately 77% of global stablecoin trading volume, up from 60% a year ago; the company generated about $1.4 billion in revenue in the first half of the year, of which about $819 million was allocated to USDC distribution partners and transaction costs, accounting for about 59%.

Approximately $473 million was invested in licenses, bank partnerships, settlement liquidity, compliance systems, product development, and multi-chain deployment, accounting for about 34%; based on this metric, Circle retains only about 7 cents of net profit for every dollar of revenue.

The announcement addressed market concerns regarding the monopolization of reserve income by stablecoin issuers, stating that partners can share corresponding reserve income by holding and expanding their USDC balances on their platforms; currently, over 150 trading platforms, wallets, banks, fintech companies, payment platforms, and enterprises have formed economic interests tied to USDC growth.

Binance signed a five-year commercial agreement with Circle in September and invested $100 million; on the product side, all Circle customers can still redeem USDC for free through traditional bank channels, with funds typically arriving within two business days.

Customers eligible for payments through the Circle Payments Network or using products like Arc, Circle Mint, and Circle Wallets will have access to free, near-real-time redemption capabilities; Circle also maintains cash pools with banking partners to support redemptions at any time.

The increase in USDC trading volume share in the first half of the year coincides with the partner revenue-sharing mechanism, indicating that reserve income is flowing more to partners holding and distributing USDC rather than being concentrated in the issuer itself.

Source: Public Information

ABAB AI Insight

Circle was founded by Jeremy Allaire in 2013, initially focusing on Bitcoin payments, and launched USDC in 2018 in partnership with Coinbase for distribution. After completing the integration of Centre Consortium in 2021, it became the main issuer of USDC; the company went public in the U.S. stock market in 2025 and secured a five-year commercial agreement and $100 million investment from Binance in 2026, while advancing OCC national trust bank licensing and MiCA compliance to address regulatory challenges and multi-market expansion.

Revenue primarily comes from interest on reserve assets, but through sharing income based on holdings with over 150 partners (including Coinbase, which holds an average USDC balance of $20 billion, a 44% year-on-year increase), about 59% of revenue is paid to distributors and transaction costs. The remaining portion is largely reinvested into banking relationships, settlement liquidity, and multi-chain deployment, compressing net profit to about 7 cents per dollar, while expanding free near-real-time redemption to reduce user friction.

This is similar to how Visa/Mastercard share transaction fees through merchant and acquirer networks to expand acceptance, or how early USDT established dominance based on exchange liquidity before facing challenges. Currently, USDC is in a phase of expanding trading volume share (from 60% to 77%) and deepening partner ties, with the issuer actively ceding income to counter lower-cost or higher-yield models promised by new entrants.

Essentially, this represents a transfer of pricing power: the competition among stablecoins is shifting from merely issuance and reserve income to economic ties of distribution networks and holding balances, where partners gain income sharing by expanding USDC balances on their platforms, while the issuer maintains its infrastructure position through compliance, multi-chain capabilities, and redemption abilities, shifting the flow of funds and income distribution from a concentrated issuer to network participants.

ABAB News · Cognitive Laws

Distribution costs determine the profit ceiling for issuers.
Share expansion = income concession × partner binding.
When redemption is free, liquidity becomes a moat.