Circle defends USDC economics as stablecoin rivals court its partners with bigger cut
Summary
Circle defended its stablecoin business model amid competition from Coinbase-backed Open USD, which plans to pass reserve income to participating businesses after a management fee. Circle said it generated about $1.4 billion in revenue in the first half of 2026, with $819 million in distribution and transaction costs and $473 million left for compliance, liquidity and product development, including stock-based compensation. Chief Commercial Officer Kash Razzaghi argued that redemption, compliance and resilience costs remain necessary. Circle is also expanding distribution through a five-year Binance deal and said qualifying customers can access near-real-time, no-cost redemptions.
