Shares of stablecoin issuer Circle (CRLC) rose on Monday, rising 15% to $130 for the first time in almost a month. The move came after the company announced it had raised $222 million in pre-sales of Arc, the native token linked to Circle’s new blockchain. The financing values Arc at a fully diluted network valuation of $3 billion
Circle CEO maps the way forward
Speaking with CNBC in an exclusive interviewCircle CEO Jeremy Allaire framed Arc as more than just another crypto launch. He compared blockchain infrastructure to major technology platforms such as mobile operating systems and cloud services, arguing that it is becoming a fundamental layer for the way businesses operate.
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“We want to build an operating system with a lot of stakeholders,” said Allaire, describing a model in which large companies are involved in running and ultimately controlling the infrastructure.
He added that Circle is on its way to becoming “a broader internet platform company,” entering “the operating systems business” while laying the groundwork for an eventual move into “the apps business.”
The Arc presale attracted a lot of support. Andreessen Horowitz led the round with a $75 million investment. Other participants mentioned in the disclosure include BlackRock, Apollo Funds and Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the owner of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).
The list also includes SBI Group, Janus Henderson Investors, Standard Chartered Ventures, General Catalyst, Marshall Wace, ARK Invest, IDG Capital, Haun Ventures and cryptocurrency exchange Bullish.
Arc tokenomics explained
Allaire said Arc is designed to support institutional financing and emphasized that Circle sees it as more than just that stablecoins and payments. In his comments, he pointed to the idea that the network can “run the real economy.”
He explained that the “economy” is not just digital representations of value, but also the contracts and governance systems that underwrite financial relationships and the institutions that rely on them. In that context, the token and blockchain are intended to provide the infrastructure layer for how economic activities are coordinated, validated and governed.
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Circle also detailed how it plans to participate in the network. With a 25% interest in Arc’s first stock 10 billion tokens will allow Circle to participate in operating the validator infrastructure, which it says will generate new fee revenue and allow the company to earn staking revenue.
The token distribution is designed to support the ecosystem: 60% of the tokens will be allocated to participants who build on, use, or contribute to the Arc Network, while the remaining 15% will go into a long-term reserve.
In addition to Arc and its token economy, Circle said it has unveiled a range of services and tools aimed at helping developers build artificial intelligence (AI) agents. The tools are designed to enable agents to manage transactions, access online services and make payments using USDC.
Featured image created with OpenArt, chart from TradingView.com