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    CRCL
    Earnings call· Jun 2026(Q2 FY26)

    Circle Internet Group Q2 FY26 earnings call CRCL

    Aug 5, 2026 Source

    Executive summary

    Circle Q2 FY26 — Strong Growth in USDC, ARC Mainnet Launch, and AI Integration

    Circle delivered a strong Q2 FY26, marked by robust growth in USDC circulation and payment volumes, alongside significant strategic advancements. The company is positioning itself at the forefront of digital dollar adoption and the emerging Agentic economy, with the upcoming ARC Mainnet launch and deep AI integration across its operations. Management remains focused on long-term platform investment over immediate capital returns, anticipating substantial growth in regulated digital dollar infrastructure.

    Highlights

    5

    • Total revenue and reserve income reached $701 million, up 7% year-over-year.

    • USDC circulation grew 19% year-over-year to $73.3 billion, with average circulation hitting an all-time high of $76.5 billion.

    • Annualized total payment volume (TPV) for CPN reached $15 billion at Q2 end, and further accelerated to $23 billion by July 31, representing 130% growth since last earnings report.

    • Adjusted EBITDA grew 8% year-over-year to $143 million, with an adjusted EBITDA margin of 50%.

    • ARC Mainnet is set to launch on September 16, with a successful $242 million presale of the token in Q2 and $3 billion asset created.

    Concerns

    5

    • Reserve return rate decreased by 66 basis points year-on-year to 3.48% due to a decline in SOFR.

    • Other revenue declined by $8 million quarter-over-quarter, reflecting moderating blockchain revenue and softer digital asset market conditions.

    • Subscription and services revenue declined by $7 million, driven by fewer blockchain integrations.

    • Transaction revenue declined by $1 million due to declining validated rewards.

    • Adjusted operating expenses increased $11 million quarter-over-quarter, or 8%, driven by ARC marketing spend, infrastructure expansion, and G&A investments.

    Guidance & targets

    5
    CategoryTargetConfidence
    Other revenue
    $310 million to $330 million
    high materiality
    High
    ARC token presale revenue recognition
    approximately 75% in 2026
    medium materiality
    High
    Revenue less distribution cost (RLDC) margin
    41.7% to 43.7%
    high materiality
    High
    Adjusted operating expenses
    $570 million to $585 million
    medium materiality
    Medium
    USDC growth framework
    40% growth CAGR
    high materiality
    High

    Operational metrics

    40
    USDC in circulation
    $73.3 billionup 20% YoY
    Q2 FY26 end

    Represents approximately 20% year-over-year growth.

    Average USDC circulation
    $76.5 billionall-time high
    Q2 FY26

    Average USDC circulation reached an all-time high in the quarter.

    USDC held within Circle's platform infrastructure
    $12.4 billionup 106% YoY
    Q2 FY26 end

    Represents 17% of total USDC circulation.

    USDC on Coinbase platform
    30%
    Q2 FY26 end

    USDC on Coinbase's platform reached 30% at quarter end.

    Hyperliquid share of USDC on Coinbase platform
    6%
    Q2 FY26 end

    Hyperliquid accounted for approximately 6% of USDC on Coinbase's platform.

    Reserve return rate
    3.48%down 66 bps YoY
    Q2 FY26

    Reflecting the decline in SOFR during the period.

    Total revenue and reserve income
    $701 millionup 7% YoY
    Q2 FY26

    Sequentially increased as average circulation hit an all-time high, partially offset by lower rates and other revenue.

    Other revenue
    $34 millionup 1.4x YoY; down $8M QoQ
    Q2 FY26

    Driven by growth in blockchain partnerships year-over-year. Quarter-over-quarter decline reflects moderating blockchain revenue and digital asset market conditions, and a deliberate decision to prioritize ARC.

    Subscription and services revenue
    declined $7 million
    Q2 FY26

    Driven by fewer blockchain integrations.

    Transaction revenue
    declined $1 million
    Q2 FY26

    Due to declining validated rewards.

    Revenue less distribution cost margin
    41.2%up 3 percentage points YoY; down 21 bps QoQ
    Q2 FY26

    Year-over-year increase driven by strategy to increase USDC held on platform and grow high-margin other revenue streams. Quarter-over-quarter decrease partially offset by strong platform execution and mix optimization.

    Total revenue and reserve income less distribution, transaction and other costs
    $289 milliongrew 15% YoY
    Q2 FY26

    Represents the core profitability metric after direct costs.

    Adjusted operating expenses
    $146 millionup 23% YoY; increased $11M QoQ
    Q2 FY26

    Driven by continued investment in product development, go-to-market infrastructure, AI capabilities, ARC marketing spend, and G&A.

    Adjusted EBITDA
    $143 milliongrew 8% YoY
    Q2 FY26

    Reflects the company's core operational profitability.

    Adjusted EBITDA margin
    50%
    Q2 FY26

    Demonstrated continued healthy profitability.

    Stablecoin market projection
    $1 billion to $4 trillion
    2030

    Third-party research projects the stablecoin market for 2030, implying significant compound annual growth rates.

    CPN annualized total payment volume
    $15 billiontremendous growth YoY and QoQ
    Q2 FY26 end (trailing 30-day)

    Reached nearly $15 billion on a trailing 30-day basis at the end of Q2.

    CPN annualized total payment volume
    $23 billion130% growth since last earnings report
    July 31 (trailing 30-day)

    As of July 31, annualized TPV on a trailing 30-day basis has already reached $23 billion.

    CPN financial institutions enrolled
    17530% QoQ growth
    Q2 FY26 end

    Continued to enroll new financial institutions into the network.

    Daily minting and redemption volume
    $1.9 billionup 105% YoY
    Q2 FY26 (average daily)

    Infrastructure that works at scale.

    Daily on-chain transaction volume
    $163 billionup 151% YoY
    Q2 FY26 (average daily)

    Transaction volume on the network continues to grow robustly.

    Real-world payment volumes growth
    84%YoY
    Q2 FY26

    Real-world payment volumes building on digital dollars have continued to scale.

    USDC share of stablecoin transaction volume
    nearly 70%
    June

    Reached a new record in June, up from 36% in Q2 last year.

    Mint on Redeem volume
    $170 billion
    Q2 FY26

    Underscores USDC's critical role supporting payments and settlement.

    ERC growth
    2.2xYoY
    Q2 FY26

    ERC remains the largest digital euro in the world.

    USYC assets
    over $3 billiongrew 10x YoY
    Q2 FY26

    USYC remains the largest tokenized money market fund in the world.

    Perpetual futures open interest collateral
    40%
    Q2 FY26

    USDC's position has continued to strengthen in these markets.

    Hyperliquid traded volume in real-world assets
    nearly 75%
    last week of Q2

    For the first time, the majority of traded volume on Hyperliquid is now in real-world assets rather than digital commodities and cryptocurrencies.

    Polymarket spot volume growth
    more than 8xYoY
    Q2 FY26

    Polymarket is a strategic distribution partner for USDC.

    Polymarket open interest growth
    more than 4xYoY
    Q2 FY26

    Open interest posted in these markets grew significantly.

    ARC Test Net transactions
    more than 0.5 billion
    to date

    Processed across nearly 3 million wallets with nearly perfect uptime.

    ARC Test Net wallets
    nearly 3 million
    to date

    Processed more than 0.5 billion transactions across these wallets.

    ARC private mainnet partners
    more than 100
    to date

    Already active preparing for the public launch.

    Employee AI tool adoption
    86%
    H1 FY26

    86% of employees are weekly active users of AI tools.

    AI apps shipped by employees
    more than 1,100
    H1 FY26

    Most shipped over the course of Q2 and by nontechnical builders.

    Agent skills published
    hundreds
    H1 FY26

    Published into an integrated Circle AI toolkit available across the company.

    Product development velocity
    up several hundred percent
    H1 FY26

    Due to continuous agent-run software development.

    Agentic payments handled by USDC network
    99.3%
    current

    Alongside payment protocols like X402.

    Paid services in agent marketplace
    more than 900
    current

    Curated agent marketplace.

    ARC asset created
    $3 billion
    pre-Mainnet launch

    Created even before Mainnet launch, demonstrating success.

    Industry KPIs

    5
    MetricValueDetails
    Revenue growth$701 millionUSD
    Bookings billings$242 millionUSD
    Customer account count175financial institutions
    Operating FCF margin rule of 4050%%
    Ai product adoption monetization86%%

    Orderbook & backlog

    1
    ARC token presale$242 millionQ2 FY26

    Revenue expected to be recognized as certain product milestones are achieved, with approximately 75% ($180 million) expected in 2026.

    Product announcements

    2
    ProductTypeDetails
    ARC Mainnetlaunch
    Agentic Finance White Paper and Roadmaproadmap

    Deals & partnerships

    6
    CoinbaseRenewal of strategic partnership for USDC

    Agreement with Coinbase has renewed on its existing terms, ensuring USDC remains central across all of Coinbase's products.

    DTCCCollaboration to bring tokenized securities to ARC

    DTCC is collaborating with Circle to bring tokenized securities to ARC, focusing first on enabling the tokenization of DTC custody assets on ARC. DTCC will participate in running the ARC network.

    BlackRockDeployment of Bit on ARC with native USDC integration

    BlackRock plans to deploy Bit on ARC to leverage Circle's infrastructure with native USDC integration, enabling institutional investors to manage fund assets on-chain.

    HyperliquidArrangement for USDC distribution and liquidity

    Circle and Coinbase collaborated on a shared revenue agreement with Hyperliquid, a high-growth platform that chose USDC for its liquidity and network effects. Hyperliquid's traded volume is now nearly 75% in real-world assets.

    Visa and MastercardKey infrastructure partners in ARC

    Expanded collaboration with Visa and Mastercard, who are becoming key infrastructure partners in ARC, which is USDC-native in its transaction and settlement infrastructure.

    CloudflareIntegration of agentic wallets with X402 and USDC support

    Cloudflare is making agentic wallets with X402 and USDC support available as a core part of their offering, touching a huge percentage of the Internet.

    Risks & headwinds

    4
    Digital asset market weaknessQ2 FY26

    Broader digital asset market capitalization declined approximately 40% year-over-year

    Mitigation: USDC circulation grew 19% over the same period, underscoring decoupling of USDC usage from market vagaries and resilience through the market cycle.

    Moderating blockchain revenue and digital asset market conditionsQ2 FY26

    Other revenue declined by $8 million QoQ

    Mitigation: Deliberate decision to prioritize ARC, which is expected to drive significant future revenue growth and has attractive margin characteristics.

    Decline in reserve return rateQ2 FY26

    3.48% in Q2, down 66 bps YoY

    Mitigation: Reflects decline in SOFR; company focuses on growing high-margin other revenue streams and increasing USDC held on its platform to offset.

    Increased operating expensesQ2 FY26

    Adjusted operating expenses increased $11 million QoQ (8%) to $146 million

    Mitigation: Driven by continued strategic investment in product development, go-to-market infrastructure, AI capabilities, ARC marketing spend, and G&A, expected to yield long-term returns.

    What to watch in Q3 FY26

    4

    ARC Mainnet launch

    September 16
    CurrentTest Net processed >0.5B transactions, >100 partners on private mainnet
    TargetSuccessful public launch and initial adoption

    Why it matters

    ARC is positioned as a new operating system for economic activity, crucial for Circle's long-term growth and diversification beyond USDC reserve income.

    ARC is coming. And we are excited to announce today that Arc Mayne will launch this quarter on September 16.

    Q&A highlights

    9

    Can you discuss the delay of the Clarity Act and its implications?

    Jeremy Allaire explained that the Clarity Act is actively being discussed in the Senate with bipartisan efforts, though final issues are being negotiated. He highlighted that the Genus Act, effective January 2027, is more critical for Circle, establishing legal digital dollars. He also noted that regulatory agencies are proactively working on their own rule-making in this space.

    “I think the first is we are seeing bipartisan work here to try and get this legislation done. And there are kind of, again, a few critical issues, but I think that they're very much resolvable, whether they get done this week or subsequent convening of Congress, we'll see.”

    asked by Norman · answered by Jeremy Allaire (Executives)

    2 min read6 chapters

    Detailed Narrative

    01

    Strategic Vision and Market Positioning

    Circle emphasizes its leadership in the digital dollar space, with USDC being the leading stablecoin network. The company highlights its competitive moats built around trust, liquidity, regulatory standing, technology, and network scale. Management believes the market for money is $120 trillion, with $60 trillion being non-interest earning, indicating a massive addressable market for USDC and its platform.

    02

    USDC Network Strength and Growth

    The USDC network is described as the largest, deepest, and most widely integrated in the industry, spanning 35 blockchain networks and reaching users in 185 countries. It includes over 15 partner banks and 150 distribution partners. Daily minting and redemption averaged $1.9 billion in Q2, up 105% YoY, and daily on-chain transaction volume averaged $163 billion, up 151% YoY. USDC's share of stablecoin transaction volume reached nearly 70% in June.

    03

    ARC Mainnet Launch and Partnerships

    The ARC Mainnet is scheduled to launch on September 16, with over 100 partners active on the private mainnet. Circle announced key partnerships with DTCC to tokenize securities on ARC and BlackRock to deploy Bit on ARC, enabling institutional investors to manage fund assets on-chain. These partnerships are expected to drive significant adoption and utility for the ARC network.

    04

    CPN Expansion and Monetization

    Circle's payments network (CPN) demonstrated robust growth, reaching nearly $15 billion in annualized total payment volume (TPV) by the end of Q2 and accelerating to $23 billion by July 31. The network has enrolled 175 financial institutions, growing 30% QoQ, and is expanding across international markets, now reaching over 58 countries. The company plans to begin monetizing CPN in the second half of the year.

    05

    Agentic Finance and AI Integration

    Circle is actively building infrastructure for the Agentic Economy, with a white paper and roadmap to be published soon. The USDC network, alongside protocols like X402, handles 99.3% of agentic payments, with over 900 paid services in its agent marketplace. Internally, Circle is transforming into an 'Agentic corporation,' with 86% of employees using AI tools weekly and over 1,100 AI apps shipped, leading to several hundred percent increase in product development velocity.

    06

    Regulatory Landscape and Capital Allocation

    The Clarity Act is actively being discussed in the Senate, with bipartisan efforts to pass legislation. The Genus Act, which passed a year ago, is considered critical and will become effective in January 2027, establishing legal digital dollars in the U.S. financial system. Circle has no plans for quarterly dividends, prioritizing a strong balance sheet and reinvestment into the platform to capitalize on massive market opportunities.

    AI-generated summary of the company’s earnings call. Not investment advice.