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Circle Internet said on Tuesday it was targeting a valuation of up to $6.71 billion on a fully diluted basis in its U.S. initial public offering, as the stablecoin giant looks to tap into growing optimism around cryptocurrency. New York-based Circle and some existing investors are looking to raise up to $624 million by offering 24 million shares priced between $24 and $26 apiece. Progress in trade talks between the U.S. and its top trading partners has also injected life into the IPO market, prompting companies to go ahead with their stock market launches as tariff-driven turbulence has eased.
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Circle is offering 9.6 million shares in the offering, while selling shareholders, including venture capital firms Accel and General Catalyst, are parting ways with 14.4 million shares. Cathie Wood’s ARK Investment Management has indicated its intention to buy up to $150 million shares of Circle in the IPO. The company’s flotation would be one of the biggest crypto listings since Coinbase Global’s (COIN.O), opens new tab, stock market debut in 2021. Mike Novogratz’s crypto firm Galaxy Digital (GLXY.O), opens new tab also debuted on the Nasdaq earlier this month.
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Circle had attempted to go public through a $9 billion blank-check deal with Bob Diamond-backed SPAC, but the deal fell apart in late 2022. “Circle now returning to the public markets indicates regained confidence — but at a 25% lower valuation, which reflects more realistic market conditions and less frothy expectations,” said US Tiger Securities analyst Bo Pei. Founded in 2013, Circle is the issuer of USDC, which has a market capitalization of over $60 billion and is the second-biggest stablecoin after Tether, according to crypto market tracker CoinGecko.
