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Circle Internet Group, Inc.: Q2 FY2026 earnings call

What management said about Q2 FY2026, from the documents filed with the SEC on 5 August 2026: press release. Guidance figures: 2 raised, 4 kept. The quarter’s numbers.

Key takeaways

  • Revenue and reserve income rose 7%: Total revenue and reserve income was $701 million, up 7%, against $694 million in the first quarter. Reserve income and other revenue both increased. Source
  • Adjusted EBITDA grew 8%: Adjusted EBITDA was $143 million, up 8%, reflecting revenue growth from higher USDC in circulation, partly offset by investment in costs for new products. First-quarter Adjusted EBITDA was $151 million. Source
  • Reserve income rose 5% to $668M: Reserve income was $668 million, up 5%, from 25% growth in average USDC in circulation. A 66 bps decline in the reserve return rate, to 3.5%, partly offset it. Source
  • Adjusted operating expenses up 23%: Adjusted operating expenses were $146 million, up 23%, from investment in product development, infrastructure and AI capabilities. First-quarter adjusted operating expenses were $136 million. Source
  • USDC in circulation reached $73.3B: USDC in circulation ended the quarter at $73.3 billion, up 19%, and averaged $76.5 billion, up 25%. The first-quarter period-end figure was $77.0 billion. Source
  • CPN volume up 76% in quarter: Circle Payments Network annualized trailing 30-day volume reached $14.7 billion at quarter end, up 76% from $8.3 billion in the first quarter, with 175 institutions enrolled. Source
  • Founding validator cohort named: Circle named the founding third-party validator cohort for Arc: BlackRock, DTCC, Galaxy, Global Payments, ICE, Mastercard, MoneyGram, SBI Group, Standard Chartered, Sumitomo and Visa. Source
  • OCC approved Circle National Trust: The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency gave final approval for Circle National Trust, a national trust bank. Circle is among the first stablecoin issuers to hold a federal bank charter. Source

“We have built the platform for the internet financial system - for traditional and digital finance, real-world assets, and the institutions that move the world’s capital.”

Jeremy Allaire, Co-Founder, CEO, and Chairman at Circle

Guidance

AreaPeriodFigureAgainst last quarter
Other revenue SourceFY 2026$310-$330MRaised from $150-$170M
RLDC margin SourceFY 202641.7-43.7%Raised from 38-40%
Adjusted operating expenses (non-GAAP) SourceFY 2026$570-$585MKept
USDC in circulation SourceMulti-year through cycle40% CAGRKept
Operating expenses (GAAP), forward reconciliation SourceFY 2026$949-$1,039M
Stock-based compensation and related payroll taxes SourceFY 2026$219-$249MKept
Depreciation and amortization SourceFY 2026$116-$141M
Circle Foundation share transfer SourceFY 2026268,239 Class A sharesKept

What changed from last quarter

  • Guidance raised: Other revenue guidance raised to $310-$330 million from $150-$170 million, now including recognized ARC Token presale revenue, which the first-quarter release excluded.
  • Guidance raised: RLDC margin guidance raised to 41.7-43.7% from 38-40%. Source
  • Guidance kept: Adjusted operating expenses guidance of $570-$585 million and USDC growth guidance of 40% CAGR kept from the first-quarter release.
  • New: Circle received final approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency for a national trust bank, Circle National Trust; this was not in the first-quarter release. Source
  • New: Circle named a founding third-party validator cohort for Arc, including BlackRock, DTCC, Mastercard, Visa and Standard Chartered. Source
  • New: BNY expanded its partnership with Circle to add USDC minting and redemption within its Digital Asset Custody platform. Source

Results and growth drivers

  • Revenue and reserve income rose 7%: Total revenue and reserve income was $701 million, up 7%, against $694 million in the first quarter. Reserve income and other revenue both increased. Source
  • Net income rose on lower stock compensation: Net income from continuing operations was $48 million, up $530 million year-over-year, driven by prior-year IPO stock-based compensation impacts. First-quarter net income was $55 million. Source
  • Adjusted EBITDA grew 8%: Adjusted EBITDA was $143 million, up 8%, reflecting revenue growth from higher USDC in circulation, partly offset by investment in costs for new products. First-quarter Adjusted EBITDA was $151 million. Source

Reserve income and other revenue

  • Reserve income rose 5% to $668M: Reserve income was $668 million, up 5%, from 25% growth in average USDC in circulation. A 66 bps decline in the reserve return rate, to 3.5%, partly offset it. Source
  • Other revenue up 41% on services: Other revenue was $34 million, up 41%, from growth in subscription and services revenue. The first-quarter figure was $42 million. Source
  • Revenue less distribution costs up 15%: Revenue less distribution costs was $289 million, up 15%, against $287 million in the first quarter. Source
  • Net reserve margin edged to 39%: Net reserve margin, reserve income less distribution and transaction costs as a share of reserve income, was 39%, up from 38% in the first quarter. Source

“That trust is earned, not assumed, and it took over a decade to build.”

Jeremy Allaire, Co-Founder, CEO, and Chairman at Circle

Costs and operating expenses

  • Operating expenses fell 56%: Operating expenses were $254 million, down 56%, mainly from lower stock-based compensation after the 2025 IPO. First-quarter operating expenses were $242 million. Source
  • Adjusted operating expenses up 23%: Adjusted operating expenses were $146 million, up 23%, from investment in product development, infrastructure and AI capabilities. First-quarter adjusted operating expenses were $136 million. Source
  • Distribution costs rose 1%: Total distribution, transaction and other costs were $412 million, up 1%, mostly from higher distribution payments. Distribution and transaction costs alone were $410 million. Source

Margins and profitability

  • Adjusted EBITDA margin was 50%: Adjusted EBITDA margin was 50%, down 329 bps year-over-year, calculated on the new Adjusted EBITDA definition used in the second quarter. Source
  • RLDC margin held at 41%: RLDC margin was 41%, up 302 bps year-over-year and unchanged from the first quarter. Net income margin was 7%. Source
  • Payroll tax on stock pay now excluded: From the first quarter of 2026, Adjusted EBITDA excludes payroll tax on stock-based compensation. That payroll expense was $7.6 million in the second quarter and $10.6 million in the first. Source

“We're only beginning to see what it unlocks.”

Jeremy Allaire, Co-Founder, CEO, and Chairman at Circle

USDC circulation and platform use

  • USDC in circulation reached $73.3B: USDC in circulation ended the quarter at $73.3 billion, up 19%, and averaged $76.5 billion, up 25%. The first-quarter period-end figure was $77.0 billion. Source
  • Onchain volume reached $14.8 trillion: USDC onchain transaction volume was $14.8 trillion, up 151% year-over-year, against $21.5 trillion in the first quarter. Source
  • USDC on platform more than doubled: USDC on platform ended at $12.4 billion, up 106%, and its daily weighted average share was 19.5%, up 1,204 bps. Period-end on-platform USDC was $13.7 billion in the first quarter. Source
  • Minting and redemptions both rose: USDC minted was $83 billion, up 97%, and redeemed was $87 billion, up 113%. Stablecoin market share ended at 27%, down 66 bps, and meaningful wallets were 7.0 million, up 24%. Source

Partners and commercial updates

  • CPN volume up 76% in quarter: Circle Payments Network annualized trailing 30-day volume reached $14.7 billion at quarter end, up 76% from $8.3 billion in the first quarter, with 175 institutions enrolled. Source
  • BNY expanded custody partnership: BNY added USDC minting and redemption to its Digital Asset Custody platform, building on its role as primary custodian of USDC reserves. Source
  • Marex first stablecoin margin transaction: Marex enabled the first stablecoin-powered initial margin transaction in regulated derivatives clearing, with USDC posted as collateral for CFTC-regulated derivatives. Source
  • Regional and merchant integrations added: Grupo Bind, JCB, Kakao Group, Nium and Standard Chartered each announced or began exploring USDC access, payment or settlement integrations, across Argentina, Japan, Korea and 190+ countries. Source

Arc network and institutions

  • Over 100 Arc builders: Arc has over 100 ecosystem and institutional builders. BlackRock, BNY, DTCC and Standard Chartered are building or exploring integrations spanning tokenized assets, custody, stablecoin access and FX and repo. Source
  • Founding validator cohort named: Circle named the founding third-party validator cohort for Arc: BlackRock, DTCC, Galaxy, Global Payments, ICE, Mastercard, MoneyGram, SBI Group, Standard Chartered, Sumitomo and Visa. Source
  • Validators tied to network integrity: Management describes the model as one in which the institutions that depend on network integrity also secure the network. Source

Trust charter and approvals

  • OCC approved Circle National Trust: The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency gave final approval for Circle National Trust, a national trust bank. Circle is among the first stablecoin issuers to hold a federal bank charter. Source
  • New York trust company approved: The New York Department of Financial Services approved Circle New York Trust as a digital asset-focused limited purpose trust company. Source
  • Charter enables USDC Reserve management: The charter enables future management of the USDC Reserve, which management says would further enhance the safety, transparency and trust of USDC. Source

Capital, cash and balance sheet

  • Holder deposits and corporate cash: Deposits from stablecoin holders were $72.9 billion at June 30, 2026, against $73.2 billion of cash segregated for holders. Corporate cash and cash equivalents were $1.73 billion. Source
  • Convertible debt balance reached nil: Convertible debt, net of debt discount, was nil at June 30, 2026, compared with $36.8 million at December 31, 2025. Source
  • Class A shares and equity rose: Class A shares outstanding rose to 233.5 million from 223.6 million at December 31, 2025, and total stockholders' equity was $3.51 billion at June 30, 2026. Source

Coming up, as management said on 5 August 2026

  • Arc public mainnet launch: Arc is set to launch on public mainnet on September 16, unveiling privacy capabilities, an agent stack and support for tokenized real-world assets. Source
  • Agentic product roadmap in H2: Circle will turn to a fuller agentic product roadmap in the second half, including enabling agents to earn. Source
  • BlackRock fund deployment on Arc: BlackRock is expected to deploy its BUIDL fund on Arc; the release gives no date. Source
  • DTCC tokenization on Arc: DTCC will enable tokenization of DTC-custodied assets on Arc; the release gives no date. Source

Figures management reported

FigureReported
USDC in circulation, end of period Source$73.3 billion
USDC onchain transaction volume, Q2 Source$14.8 trillion
USDC minted, Q2 Source$83 billion
USDC redeemed, Q2 Source$87 billion
CPN annualized transaction volume, trailing 30 days Source$14.7 billion
Financial institutions enrolled in CPN Source175
Meaningful wallets, end of period Source7.0 million
Agent Stack paid services Source900+
Arc ecosystem and institutional builders Sourceover 100

Risks management discussed

  • External: Management cited the current rate environment and a slowed crypto market as conditions outside the network. Source
  • Regulatory: Estimated one-time fees for implementing new governance structures to meet U.S. regulatory requirements are included in the legal expense estimate. Source
  • Regulatory: Legal expenses were $10.3 million in the second quarter, up from $7.0 million in the first, and were excluded from adjusted measures. Source

Earlier plans management reported on

  • Not stated: The first-quarter release affirmed prior FY 2026 guidance; the second-quarter release revised the Other Revenue and RLDC Margin figures.
  • Met: Management says it shipped payment infrastructure for agents in the first half, then launched Agent Stack in May 2026. Source

Other quarters

Summarised with AI from the documents the company filed with the SEC. Every point is checked against the filing before it is shown: management’s own words word for word, figures against the line or table row they come from. A point that fails the check is left out. Source opens the filing at that line.