Circle Goes Public: A Milestone for Stablecoins in Mainstream Finance

Last Thursday evening, Circle, the issuer of the world's second-largest stablecoin USDC, was officially listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The issue price was $31 per share, and on the first day of trading, the stock price surged by 168.48%, closing at $83.23, with a market capitalization exceeding $18.5 billion. The next day, the stock price continued to rise by nearly 30%.

The total market value of stablecoins globally has surpassed $250 billion, with USDT and USDC accounting for a combined 86% market share. Circle has adjusted its opening price multiple times ahead of its listing, reflecting that market enthusiasm for stablecoins far exceeds expectations.

The listing of Circle has sparked widespread attention to the concept of "stablecoin" in the financial sector, prompting more traditional finance professionals to re-evaluate the value of stablecoins. Meanwhile, the Hong Kong SAR government announced that the "Stablecoin Ordinance" will officially come into effect on August 1, 2025, and the U.S. GENIUS stablecoin bill is also in progress. These measures further enhance the popularity of stablecoins in the financial market.

Four years ago, a large cryptocurrency exchange in the United States successfully went public on Nasdaq, with a market capitalization exceeding $112 billion on the first day of trading, bringing considerable returns to early investors. Despite undergoing more than two years of adjustment afterward, this listing showcased the potential of emerging financial markets to traditional financial markets, paving the way for later BTC ETFs and various reserve assets.

The significance of Circle's listing is monumental, as it pushes stablecoins onto a broader stage and has garnered the favor of some traditional funds. Through the listing, Circle demonstrates its financial strength and company transparency, which are crucial for the development of stablecoins. As Circle's co-founder stated, the IPO will bring more trust, compliance, and transparency to its regulated stablecoin network and help establish partnerships with other financial institutions.

Stablecoins, to some extent, embody some of Satoshi Nakamoto's ideals of decentralized currency. Although stablecoins have returned to institutional logic, they draw on the form of blockchain technology and play an important role in the payment sector. According to a report by a well-known venture capital firm, the trading volume of stablecoins has reached 33 trillion USD in the past 12 months, far exceeding the transaction volumes of PayPal and Visa.

Although the current market size of stablecoins is not small, there is still significant room for growth compared to the traditional payment market. In the next 3-5 years, stablecoins are expected to become a market worth over a trillion dollars. Circle's listing can be seen as an important step in the "legitimization" of stablecoins, and this is just the beginning. As the most mature application in the cryptocurrency industry aside from trading, stablecoins may become the key to promoting the adoption of Web3/Crypto applications.

For investors and entrepreneurs, the stablecoin sector holds enormous opportunities. Whether as participants in financial innovation or service providers, there is hope to find their place in this rapidly developing market. Although risks coexist with opportunities, the future development prospects of the stablecoin market are promising.