Shares of Circle (NYSE:CRCL) are on the rise today following an earnings report that pleased investors.
Circle reported Q1 2026 top-line revenue and reserve income of $694 million, which grew 20% year over year.
Net income from operations during the quarter was $55 million, a decrease of 15%, but adjusted EBITDA was reported at $151 million an increase of 24%.
USDC or Circle’s dollar-based stablecoin stood at $77 billion in circulation at the end of the quarter, an increase of 28%.
Operating Expenses were booked at $242 million an increase 76% year-over-year, mostly due to higher compensation costs from post IPO stock-based compensation and related payroll taxes.
Jeremy Allaire, co-Founder and CEO of Circle, said that the first quarter reflected strong execution against a much bigger opportunity: the convergence of AI platforms and economic operating systems.
“With the ARC token presale, momentum behind the Arc network, and the launch of our Agent Stack, we are building trusted infrastructure for AI-native economic activity and a more programmable internet financial system.”
ARC token is a new digital asset issued by Circle that is tied to the layer-one blockchain of the Arc Network. Arc focuses on stablecoin finance, the tokenization of RWAs, and other institutional-grade applications. As digital finance heats up, there is growing competition for who operates the most robust and efficient blockchain network.
As part of the earnings release, Circle reported that it had raised $222 million for the new institutional blockchain at a $3 billion valuation. Arc’s 10 billion tokens include Circle’s 25% holdings.
Shares of Circle are currently up over 11% in early trading.
