Company: CRCL
Filing Date: 2025-04-01
Form Type: S-1
Source: 0001193125-25-070481
Chunk: 208

Company: Circle Internet Group, Inc.
Filing Date: 2025-04-01
Form: S-1
Chunk 208
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 we view as the highest levels of transparency, safety, and operational resiliency in our industry. The largest U.S. dollar-denominated stablecoin as measured by the amount of stablecoins in circulation is USDT (issued by Tether, an El Salvador-headquartered affiliate of China-based crypto exchange Bitfinex Ltd.), 146

according to CoinMarketCap. Other competitive stablecoins include white-labeled stablecoins issued and operated by Paxos, including PayPal USD, a stablecoin that is integrated into PayPal wallet
products, which has experienced limited distribution and adoption to date, but remains a potentially significant competitor.

We also indirectly compete with other
payment systems and innovations, including offerings being explored by national governments and central banks, where a number of developments are underway to improve upon legacy government payment systems infrastructure. For example, Real-Time
Payments is a payment processing protocol which has been used by banks in the United States since 2017 to send money electronically among each other, and the more recent FedNow program is a real-time payment and settlement service for individuals
and businesses provided by the Federal Reserve. However, these initiatives are merely enhancements to traditional banking and payment constructs, are often focused on specific regions, and do not directly compete against stablecoin networks and
open, blockchain-based financial infrastructure.

Additionally, some major financial institutions such as J.P. Morgan are expanding their use of blockchain
technology for digital asset applications and private stablecoin issuance. As other major financial institutions explore new alternative payment systems, we believe these institutions have the potential to be some of the biggest clients of
blockchain financial services, and by extension Circle. Some have integrated blockchain technologies to offer faster cross-border payments and reduced settlement times, while other banks have explored issuing stablecoins. Our focus on building
stablecoin networks on public internet infrastructure and open blockchain networks differentiates us from these closed-network projects, allowing for greater reach, interoperability, and ongoing developer-led
innovation of the Circle stablecoin network.

Further, some countries and central banks are also exploring initiatives to create CBDCs. A CBDC is a digital form of a
country’s fiat currency that is issued, regulated, and backed by its central bank. For example, China and Sweden have formally launched live pilot CBDC programs while others such as the United Kingdom have announced preliminary initiatives to
explore the benefits of CBDCs.

We are witnessing a rapidly growing trend in asset tokenization. The ability to convert real-world assets into digital assets on a
blockchain has presented new challenges