Circle Targets Late April for IPO Filing as Crypto Market Rebounds

Circle Internet Financial, the company behind the popular cryptocurrency stablecoin USDC, is gearing up to take its shares public. The fintech company has tapped major investment banks JPMorgan Chase and Citi to guide its initial public offering, according to two sources familiar with the plans. While exact timing remains fluid, Circle is aiming to file its IPO paperwork publicly in late April, a move that would shed light on its financial health and set the stage for trading to begin about a month later.

This marks Circle’s second stab at going public. Back in 2021, the company pursued a merger with a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, a once-popular route to market that later faded amid tighter regulatory oversight. That deal fell apart by late 2022 after the Securities and Exchange Commission withheld approval, compounded by the fallout from the FTX collapse and a broader crypto market slump. Undeterred, Circle shifted gears, confidentially filing for a traditional IPO in January 2024, though it’s only now preparing to unveil those details to the public.

The upcoming offering could be a significant moment for the crypto industry, rivaling Coinbase’s high-profile 2021 debut, where JPMorgan and Citi also played advisory roles. Founded in 2013 by Jeremy Allaire and Sean Neville, with Allaire now leading solo after Neville’s 2019 exit, Circle has secured $1.1 billion from heavyweights like BlackRock and Coinbase. The IPO arrives as the U.S. market for new listings heats up, with 73 companies raising $11.8 billion so far in 2025—a sharp rise from last year’s totals.

Stablecoin Success and Shifting Challenges

Circle’s journey has seen its share of pivots, from early ventures in payments and crypto trading to its focus on stablecoins since 2018. Its flagship USDC, designed to hold a steady $1 value, took off during the 2021 crypto boom, growing from a $1 billion market cap in 2020 to over $50 billion by 2022. The stablecoin’s rise was fueled by its role in decentralized finance and trading, with Circle earning substantial interest from the U.S. Treasuries backing it. Today, USDC’s market cap sits at an all-time high of $60 billion.

Yet, the road hasn’t been without bumps. In March 2023, Circle faced a crisis when $3.3 billion of its reserves were trapped at the collapsing Silicon Valley Bank, briefly knocking USDC off its peg. Federal intervention stabilized the situation, but the episode slashed USDC’s market cap to under $25 billion by year-end, though it has since rebounded. Beyond that scare, Circle’s reliance on interest income, accounting for nearly all its revenue in early 2023, per unaudited figures, raises questions about diversification as it pitches itself to investors.

Valuation has also been a moving target. Circle hit a $9 billion peak in 2022 during its SPAC talks, but secondary market trades last July pegged it closer to $5 billion, aligning with the $4 billion to $5 billion range it now seeks for the IPO. Meanwhile, a brighter regulatory outlook for stablecoins, with Congress advancing related legislation and support from a pro-crypto White House, could bolster its case. Still, competition is intensifying as players like Ripple, PayPal, and even Fidelity eye the stablecoin space.