Circle Stock Jumps 15% on AI Payments Infrastructure Bet
Circle shares climbed 15% on Monday as analysts reframe USDC as AI payments infrastructure rather than a crypto play. The stock now trades at ₱5,590 ($96), up 71% since early February.
Key Takeaway
Wall Street is betting Circle wins as AI agents adopt USDC for payments, not crypto speculation.
Circle shares climbed 15% on Monday, pushing total gains to 60% since last week's Q4 earnings release. CRCL now trades at ₱5,590 ($96), up 71% in just over a month.
The rally comes as analysts reframe USDC not as a crypto bet but as AI payments infrastructure. Swyftx Lead Analyst Pav Hundal said investors are picking winners and losers in the AI narrative, with Circle emerging as a perceived winner. He added that USDC has become a payments infrastructure and agentics bet rather than a pure crypto play.
The shift follows explosive Q4 numbers. USDC supply grew 72% to ₱4.38 trillion ($75.3 billion) while Circle revenue jumped 77% to ₱44.83 billion ($770 million). Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire told investors the company's future would be tied to artificial intelligence and drive the greatest acceleration of economic activity in human history.
Derive Head of Research Sean Dawson said regulatory momentum from the GENIUS Act and clear product market fit have made CRCL a stable place to invest as digital asset markets languished over recent months. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency released its GENIUS Act implementation proposal last week, though it remains subject to a 60-day public comment period.
Presto Labs Head of Research Peter Chung noted USDC's year-to-date supply growth of 0.1% outpaced Tether's 2% decline, driven partly by increased usage on prediction markets like Polymarket. Pending CLARITY Act restrictions on stablecoin rewards could ironically benefit Circle by shielding its revenue base from competitive pressure.
Circle debuted on the NYSE in June 2025 at ₱1,805 ($31) per share, meaning the stock still trades more than 10% below its IPO price despite recent momentum.
This article was written based on reporting from Decrypt.
