The founder of Circle recounts how programmable currency is changing finance and trade

The issuer of the second largest stablecoin USDC, Circle, has just filed for listing on the NYSE. In the prospectus, the company's founder Jeremy Allaire wrote a letter to potential investors. This letter can help us better understand the operational logic behind USDC.

Jeremy Allaire co-founded Allaire Corporation in the 1990s (the main product was the web development software ColdFusion). The company was acquired by Macromedia in 2001.

Jeremy Allaire co-founded the online video platform Brightcove in 2004 and served as CEO. Brightcove went public on NASDAQ in 2012.

Jeremy Allaire co-founded Circle with Sean Neville in 2013.

The following is the Chinese translation of the founder's letter in the prospectus:

To understand the vision behind the founding of Circle, we need to look back at my experiences; when discussing our achievements, I must talk about our business philosophy; looking to the future, I would also like to share my views on Circle's IPO and the role Circle will play in the global financial system over the next 10 years.

1. I am a staunch supporter of the internet

I was very lucky to have an Apple II computer in the early 1980s. It helped me access the online world before the internet. This was not easy at the time. Also, my parents' views influenced me: they believed that if people could be connected from all over the world, then the world would surely undergo significant changes.

I studied political science, philosophy, and economics in college. I believe that if free information and free markets could be linked for trade, the world would be more prosperous and stable. It was during that time, in 1990, that I became fascinated with the internet, which at that time was not so commercialized, running command lines on decentralized servers, computing statistical equations.

At that time, I became a staunch supporter of the internet. I firmly believe that a global computer network connected by open technological protocols will fundamentally change society and the economy.

In the next 20 years, I am committed to building such an internet software platform and infrastructure. I co-founded two global internet technology companies during the Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 eras, both of which achieved public listing.

The power of the Internet to change the world is irreversible, but the process is very tortuous.

2. Financial Crisis (Turning Point)

In the past 20 years, the world has experienced the most severe global financial crisis of this century.

In the 1990s and the first decade of the 21st century, the economy grew rapidly and globalization advanced rapidly. The internet played a significant role in this. But in 2008, everything collapsed.

As an economics student, I conducted in-depth research. I am greatly disappointed with the enormous financial industry and believe we need a new internet-based financial system: open networks, open software, and global integration. A digital currency backed by 100% reserves can play a key role in this.

It was during this exploratory period that I stumbled upon Bitcoin in 2012. While I do not believe Bitcoin is the answer to financial problems, it opened my eyes to revolutionary technological innovations that make it possible to build an open, internet-based financial system.

3. The Founding and Vision of Circle

In early 2013, after in-depth research on Bitcoin and blockchain technology, Sean Neville, co-founder of Circle, and I clearly recognized that a significant innovation of the internet was being born. It provided a new set of open protocols that would have a disruptive impact on value exchange.

Although it was not possible at the time, we knew clearly that blockchain technology would support the issuance of digital tokens, allow for the layering of smart contracts, and ultimately enable the construction of higher-level monetary protocols. This will be more influential than the network itself, as it can not only change the transmission of information but also transform the entire global economic system.

We envision developing a "currency HTTP", which is a protocol for US dollars and other fiat digital currency tokens that will provide an open and programmable infrastructure to reconstruct the global financial system in the manner of the internet.

For both of us, there are two things that we are very clear about.

First, blockchain will surpass traditional finance in scale, speed, and efficiency. Therefore, the dollar protocol on the blockchain can definitely construct a new world. In this world, the storage and transmission services of value (fiat currency value) can be commercialized. This service will accelerate the circulation of currency, releasing trillions of dollars from financial accounts into the real economy. This is valuable.

Secondly, digital currency protocols can be programmed through smart contracts, which means that the utility of the currency will undergo a significant transformation. New "currency modules" will emerge, capable of changing the operations of finance, trade, commerce, and capital markets.

4. Vision and Implementation

As a pioneer in the digital asset and blockchain industry, I believe Circle can stand out among many companies. I believe our mission is valuable (to drive global economic growth through frictionless value exchange). We know that having a mission is not enough; we need to take a different approach from those who focus on cryptocurrency speculation.

In the development process of Circle, we have several key principles:

(1) It is very important to actively engage with regulatory authorities. We have been proactively engaging with regulators and policymakers worldwide. As an opportunity for regulatory interaction, and to help governments understand these complex new technologies, we have testified before legislative bodies in the United States and other countries. In addition, we frequently communicate and interact with regulators and policymakers.

(2) Adopting a platform-first technology framework. When building the digital currency tech stack, we considered the open nature of the platform, allowing partners to utilize this platform. This has driven the creation and success of USDC, and has also advanced the services of the Circle platform.

(3) Adapt to the current market situation. The pace of technology and the market does not always align. What technology evangelists build is likely to be out of sync with the rhythm of mainstream demand. Therefore, we must adopt a strategy of taking small steps quickly, proceeding with caution to achieve immediate success, while always keeping an eye on long-term goals.

(4) Treat compliance as a competitive advantage. Our vision is to integrate the existing financial system with the new internet financial system, which means that cryptocurrency is a technology that can connect these two worlds. To achieve this, we must continuously invest heavily in compliance. This can both gain regulatory support and enhance our attractiveness to potential partners and clients.

Overall, these principles have enabled Circle to move flexibly in the early stages of the market, develop rapidly, and ultimately equipped us with the capability to launch USDC in 2018. In our seventh year, we achieved the goal of creating smart contracts for USD on the internet. Although we have faced challenges in the past and will continue to face new challenges in the future, I believe Circle will be in a key position within the infrastructure of the new internet financial system.

5. The Achievements We Have Obtained

Today, Circle is a globally recognized and respected company known for its integrity and transparency. We are both advocates and leaders of the internet financial system.

Since the launch of the stablecoin USDC in 2018, as of March 31, 2025, the cumulative trading of USDC has exceeded 25 trillion USD, with nearly 6 trillion USD traded in the first quarter of 2025 alone.

As of May 23, 2025, the circulating USDC exceeds 61 billion USD, with millions of end users using USDC for payments, settlements, and as a store of value for digital dollars.

Thousands of companies and developers have integrated with USDC, creating a thriving ecosystem. Major payment companies, enterprise technology firms, consumer internet applications, financial technology ("FinTech") companies, and digital asset companies use Circle's technology to build USDC-based solutions.

The strength of USDC is based on its robust infrastructure and liquidity. From January 1, 2021, to March 31, 2025, Circle minted over $55.8 billion of USDC and redeemed over $50.2 billion of USDC (these redemptions have always maintained a 1:1 ratio with the US dollar).

We've faced challenges. For example, in 2023, USDC has experienced a period of declining circulation, which is related to a variety of factors. These include the rise in short-term interest rates in the United States, the decline in the price of digital assets (and the corresponding decrease in leverage in digital asset trading), and the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank in the United States in March 2023 (where some of USDC's dollar reserves are held) caused a temporary disconnect in USDC's secondary market prices, which caused some market share to flow to competitors.

In the future, we will undoubtedly face challenges. However, the growth of the USDC and Circle stablecoin network has shown resilience and enabled us to become a strong and prosperous company in a short period of time.

Our revenue grew from $15.4 million in 2020 to $84.9 million in 2021, reached $772 million in 2022, $1.5 billion in 2023, and $1.7 billion in 2024.

In 2024, we reported a net income of $155.7 million, with an adjusted EBITDA of $284.9 million. In the first quarter of 2025, we reported a net income of $64.8 million, with an adjusted EBITDA of $122.4 million.

As of March 31, 2025, we have a total of $1.1 billion in liquid assets, including $848.6 million in cash and cash equivalents and $274.5 million in stablecoin emergency reserves.

During this period, we also established a globally diverse team, covering more than a dozen countries and 35 states in the United States. This team has backgrounds in the internet, technology, and finance, and they possess the skills to realize our vision.

Circle is a product and technology-oriented company that has made and will continue to make significant investments in product and technology development, creating long-term value in the market.

6. Becoming a Public Company

For a long time, Circle has attracted a lot of attention. The market is very focused on a company that operates the digital dollar infrastructure. Therefore, Circle must operate in a highly transparent manner while also accepting regulation from government agencies both in the United States and globally. As a global institution, we take our role and responsibility as a custodian of financial assets very seriously.

For Circle, listing on the New York Stock Exchange is our way of achieving the highest level of transparency and accountability. We are building infrastructure that is critical to the financial system, and we want to work with leading companies and governments around the world to shape and build this new internet financial system. After going public, we must adhere to the NYSE's strict disclosure, governance, and other requirements, which will strengthen our commitment to transparency and accountability.

Most importantly, the listing is a crossroads for Circle and the development of the internet financial system. The opportunities we see must be based on a combination of technological readiness, regulatory clarity, and market demand. It is complex and occurs at the intersection of highly innovative technology and financial services. While we are proud and confident in our capabilities, our future (like our past) is certainly filled with uncertainty and risks. We describe these risks in this prospectus, and we ask you to read them carefully.

Becoming a publicly listed company allows us to invite the public to join us on this journey.

7. Long-term Approaches and Philosophy

If you choose to become an investor in Circle, it is very important to understand our philosophy.

We are working towards a very long-term goal, creating a new internet platform company that will be built on top of the internet financial system. We believe that we are still in the very early stages of the development of this new financial system.

We believe that we have just entered the prologue, and there are huge growth opportunities ahead. This means that in the foreseeable future, we must invest heavily in areas with significant long-term growth potential to achieve growth.

Most importantly, we will continue to build and lead the company based on our mission and values.

8. We Are Different

We often say that Circle is unique. If you ask our investors, employees, or even the entire market, you will receive the same answer. We cannot be easily categorized.

Some people say we are like a payment company, others say we are like a financial institution, and some say we are like a consumer internet or platform software company. The reality is that we share some similarities with all of these types of companies.

This is exactly what makes us different.

We are building an internet platform company: the Circle stablecoin network provides services on the internet for consumers and businesses, and offers developers a set of software protocols to build their own small business ecosystems.

At the same time, we are building a robust financial market infrastructure in a constantly changing regulatory environment. We take pride in embracing regulation, comply with laws, and actively engage with regulators to advocate for appropriate regulations designed for the industry.

9. This is an adventure journey

If you join us as an investor, I would also like to share with you some words that I have shared with every employee.

Given the complexity of the ecosystem we are in: innovative technologies are intertwined with highly regulated traditional financial services, building a new internet financial system, creating significant new infrastructure for currency and economic activities, shaping and responding to policies, and operating this infrastructure in a globally complex macroeconomic environment, what we do is not easy. There are challenges every day, but it is also an exciting financial and technological adventure.

We have a clear vision of what the future internet financial system can bring to the world. If we achieve this vision, we believe that Circle's investors will be rewarded, and at the same time, you will contribute to the progress of humanity.

I hope you can join us on this adventure!