USDC: The world’s digital dollar
USDC is a digital dollar that travels across many blockchain networks, which can provide significant cost, speed, and reach advantages compared to traditional forms of money. As a digital dollar, USDC supports the three primary functions of money. It serves as a digital store of value, unit of account, and medium of exchange.
Digital dollars like USDC are tokenized versions of fiat currency that have been uploaded to the internet, enabling people and businesses to send, spend, save, and store value with the same efficiencies and scale as other forms of internet data that we take for granted today. Global studies show that sending $200 across borders can cost more than 6% of the amount sent (and growing), and these payments are also getting slower.6 USDC can enable near-instant dollar transfers at a cost of less than a penny.7
As outlined throughout this report, USDC is digital money infrastructure that is ideal for accessing dollars as a store of value globally, making payments — especially across borders — and facilitating activity in digital asset markets. USDC does not just make money movement faster, better, and cheaper, it also unlocks new financial opportunities and applications.
What makes USDC so powerful is that it is both a digital dollar and a platform. This platform is eliminating the technical hurdles of sending funds and building new applications on the blockchain, both of which have slowed adoption to date. Over time, this platform will push the complexities of blockchain to the background so that it is easier to use and build with USDC, paving the way for mainstream adoption.
Circle is the sole issuer of USDC. As the issuer, we ensure the confidence in USDC and its 1:1 redeemability through the safety of the underlying reserve, along with transparency into reserve assets. We have built robust prudential risk management and transparency standards around the USDC reserve to instill the highest confidence in its 1:1 redeemability.
Circle’s guiding principles for managing USDC
USDC is a tokenized dollar, not a tokenized bank deposit
Redeemable 1:1 for USD, around the world and around the clock
Full disclosure of reserve assets, with third-party assurance
Comprehensive risk management and world-class financial partners
USDC is fully reserved at all times by cash and equivalents kept within the regulated financial system. The USDC reserve is approximately 90% in short-duration U.S. Treasuries and overnight repurchase agreement (repos) largely held with Global Systemically Important Banks (G-SIBs). The treasuries are managed by BlackRock via the SEC-regulated Circle Reserve Fund, which discloses holdings daily. The remainder of the USDC reserve (10%) is in cash to facilitate immediate liquidity, with approximately 90% of this cash held with G-SIBs.
Each week, we also disclose reserve assets, minting, and redemption on the Transparency page at circle.com. On a monthly basis, we issue USDC and EURC Reserve Reports, and Deloitte, our independent auditor, issues an opinion on these reports.8
EURC — the leading euro stablecoin
In addition to USDC, Circle also issues EURC, a euro-backed stablecoin (e-money token) that is fully issued and reserved by our regulated E-Money Institution in France in compliance with the European Union’s (EU) Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) regulatory framework. USDC also enjoys this legal and regulatory clarity in Europe, as Circle became the first major global stablecoin issuer to comply with MiCA rules for both EURC and USDC, which came into effect in July 2024.9
In early October 2024, EURC became the largest euro-backed stablecoin by total circulation and surpassed $1 billion in weekly transfer volume.10 EURC is accessible on multiple blockchains and widely supported by large crypto asset service providers in the EU. The growth of non-USD stablecoins introduces new possibilities for blockchain-based finance, including foreign exchange (FX), local capital markets, and tokenization efforts, as well as regional cross-border and remittance payments channels.
Circle is regulated in the U.S. and other global jurisdictions.11 We maintain know-your-customer (KYC), anti-money laundering (AML), sanctions, privacy, regulatory reporting, and other risk management programs, while conducting blockchain monitoring and screening for child exploitation, sanctioned addresses, terrorist financing, and other illicit activity.
The bridge to the blockchain
As the bridge between traditional finance and blockchains, stablecoins require strong integration with the banking system at all times. Since the launch of USDC, Circle has moved more than $850 billion back-and-forth between fiat and supported blockchains.12 Circle partners with leading banks — including several Global Systemically Important Banks (G-SIBs) — to ensure that USDC is redeemable 1:1 for U.S. dollars.
Our partner banks are strategically located around the world, which makes USDC cost-effective and accessible in markets where it is in high demand. This year, Circle began to make USDC available in certain countries through national payment systems and via local currency. As we pursue additional bank integrations, we anticipate this type of local availability to grow more widespread. USDC is also accepted as a major settlement currency on world-leading card and payment networks, which support its use as a medium of exchange.
2025 State of the USDC Economy report
“G20 Roadmap for Enhancing Cross-border Payments.” Financial Stability Board. Retrieved from: https://www.fsb.org/uploads/P211024-1.pdf
“State of Crypto Report: 2024.” a16zrypto. October 16, 2024. Retrieved from: https://a16zcrypto.com/posts/article/state-of-crypto-report-2024/
Deloitte & Touche LLP is Circle's independent auditor and has audited Circle's financials since fiscal 2022. Prior to Deloitte, Grant Thornton LLP served as Circle's independent auditor from 2015.
“Circle is First Global Stablecoin Issuer to Comply with MiCA, EU’s Landmark Crypto Law.” Circle Pressroom. July 1, 2024. Retrieved from: https://www.circle.com/pressroom/circle-is-first-global-stablecoin-issuer-to-comply-with-mica-eus-landmark-crypto-law
Artemis. Retrieved from: https://app.artemis.xyz/stablecoins?tab=usage
For a full list of Circle licenses, visit https://www.circle.com/en/legal/licenses
Through November 30, 2024