Stablecoin Issuer Circle Mulls 2024 IPO: Report

Circle, the issuer of stablecoin USDC, is planning to make another attempt to go public by early 2024, Bloomberg reported. Last year, the Boston-headquartered company attempted a public listing with a reverse merger deal but failed.

Circle’s Ambitions to Go Public

However, there has yet to be an official confirmation from Circle on the fresh attempt at public listing. A representative from Circle declined to comment “on rumors,” adding: “Becoming a U.S.-listed public company has long been part of Circle’s strategic aspirations.”

According to the media report, “people with knowledge of the matter” revealed that Circle is currently talking to advisers as it prepares for a potential initial public offering (IPO). However, there is no certainty that the company will proceed with the public listing.

this + circle considering a 2024 IPO coming after hours is kind of interesting maybe reading too much into it, but feels like increasingly friendly regulation + stablecoin bill developments happening behind closed doors https://t.co/zWjUDjtDPp

The Issuer of Second-Largest Stablecoin

Circle was established in 2013 and is the issuer of the second-largest USD-pegged stablecoin, USDC, with a market capitalization of about $24.5 billion. For the governance of USDC, initially, Circle and the crypto exchange Coinbase jointly managed Centre Consortium, which was shuttered last August. Coinbase now holds an unknown amount of equity stake in Circle.

In its previous attempt to go public, Circle partnered with Concord Acquisition Corp., a blank-check firm led by Bob Diamond, the former CEO at Barclays. Then, the stablecoin issuer was valued at $9 billion.

Last year, Circle also reportedly secured funding at a valuation of $7.7 billion. The funding round was participated by heavyweights like Goldman Sachs Group Inc., General Catalyst Partners, BlackRock Inc., Fidelity Management and Research LLC, and Marshall Wace LLP.

Meanwhile, Circle risked de-pegging of USDC earlier this year with the collapse of its banking partner, Silicon Valley Bank. The stablecoin issuer had a $3.3 billion exposure to the collapsed bank and was saved by the bailout package of the US government to save the customers, who were not covered under FIDC insurance.