Circle Q2 2026 Revenue Hits $701M as USDC Volume Reaches $14.8

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Circle Internet Group reported $701 million in total revenue and reserve income for the second quarter of 2026, up 7% year-over-year, according to the company’s earnings release. Reserve income specifically came in at $668 million, up 5% year-over-year, while other revenue, which includes subscription and services revenue, rose 41% to $34 million.

Circle has named the founding validator cohort for Arc, including BlackRock, DTCC, Mastercard, Visa, ICE, and Standard Chartered, ahead of the network’s September 16 public mainnet launch. BlackRock is expected to deploy its BUIDL fund on Arc, while DTCC plans to tokenize DTC-custodied assets on the platform.

Net income jumps to $48 million as year-ago IPO stock compensation rolls off

The company posted net income from continuing operations of $48 million, a swing of $530 million from the prior-year quarter. The increase is not primarily an operating story: it stems from lower stock-based compensation expense following Circle’s IPO in the second quarter of 2025, which had weighed heavily on that year-ago comparison.

Total operating expenses fell 56% year-over-year for the same reason, even as adjusted operating expenses, which strip out that one-time comp effect, rose 23% year-over-year on continued investment in product development, infrastructure, and AI capabilities.

USDC in circulation grows to $73.3 billion, up 19% year-over-year

USDC in circulation stood at $73.3 billion at quarter end, up 19% year-over-year. Average USDC in circulation for the quarter grew faster still, up 25% year-over-year. That figure is what Circle credits with driving reserve income growth, even as a 66-basis-point decline in the reserve return rate partially offset the gain.

Onchain USDC transaction volume surges 151% to $14.8 trillion

Onchain USDC transaction volume reached $14.8 trillion in the quarter, up 151% year-over-year, a growth rate roughly six times faster than either measure of supply growth reported alongside it. That gap matters beyond the headline number: when transaction volume outpaces supply growth by this much, it implies each dollar of USDC is changing hands more often than it did a year ago, consistent with USDC increasingly functioning as a settlement instrument rather than static reserve holdings.

Adjusted EBITDA rises 8% to $143 million

Adjusted EBITDA came in at $143 million, up 8% year-over-year, which Circle attributed to revenue growth from higher USDC in circulation, partially offset by increased investment in costs tied to new products.

That rate-driven headwind on reserve income, already visible this quarter, isn’t tied to USDC adoption itself; it’s a function of the broader interest-rate environment. With reserve income still the largest single component of Circle’s revenue, a further decline in rates would keep working against otherwise-strong circulation growth, a dynamic worth watching independent of how USDC’s onchain usage trends from here.