\n<\/p>\n
Circle, one of the world\u2019s largest issuers of USDC, a stablecoin pegged to the U.S. dollar, ended its first trading day as a public company at $83.23 per share, 168% above its IPO price of $31 set the previous day.<\/p>\n
The IPO pop demonstrates public market investors\u2019 interest in cryptocurrencies and stablecoins in particular amid the Trump administration\u2019s supportive stance on crypto assets.<\/p>\n
The significant surge in Circle\u2019s first-day trading could prompt institutional investors to set higher IPO prices for upcoming listings. Imminent IPOs include Omada Health, which is pricing on Thursday, and Klarna, a fintech that\u2019s set to list next week. \u00a0<\/p>\n
The company\u2019s IPO share price set its initial market value at $6.1 billion,\u00a0a figure that fell short of Circle\u2019s last private market valuation of $7.7 billion from 2021 when the company raised a $400 million Series F, according to PitchBook data.<\/p>\n
But the big pop cleaned that up, and then some. Circle\u2019s market capitalization (excluding employee options) stood at $16.7 billion by the close of trading. And the company raised about $1.1 billion in the offering.<\/p>\n
Circle joins a growing list of companies whose IPOs are priced below their private market highs, including recent \u201cdown-round\u201d offerings from health tech Hinge<\/a>, contractor platform ServiceTitan<\/a>, and social network Reddit<\/a>. So that\u2019s not likely to dissuade startups looking for signs that now is the right time to go public.<\/p>\n Circle\u2019s successful IPO comes three years after Circle\u2019s previous attempt at going public. The stablecoin issuer had plans to combine with a SPAC in 2022 at a $9 billion valuation.<\/p>\n The company\u2019s largest outside shareholders are General Catalyst, which held approximately 8.9% of all stock before the offering, and IDG Capital, which owned 8.8% of all shares. Other significant venture investors include Accel, Breyer Capital, and Oak Investment Partners, according to the S-1<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n