Citizens Initiates Coverage on Circle, Assigns Market Perform Rating
U.S. bank Citizens has begun coverage of Circle Internet (CRCL) with a market perform rating, noting the company is well-positioned to capitalize on stablecoin adoption, though much of the upside is already reflected in its valuation.
Circle, issuer of the dollar-pegged USDC and euro-pegged EURC, offers a broad infrastructure suite, including a payments network, cross-chain protocol, and programmable wallets. Its upcoming Arc layer-1 blockchain aims to expand programmable money applications in payments, trading, and tokenization.
Stablecoins are at an inflection point, with market capitalization projected to grow from $300 billion today to $3 trillion by 2030, supported by regulatory clarity from the U.S. GENIUS Act, Europe’s MiCA, and other frameworks. USDC circulation has doubled year-over-year to roughly $74 billion, fully backed by cash and treasuries, providing a compliance-focused competitive advantage.
Circle is well-capitalized, holding over $1 billion in cash post-IPO, supporting investments and acquisitions. At $133 per share, valuation multiples of 39x EV/2026E and 23x EV/2027E EBITDA reflect leadership but limit near-term upside unless adoption accelerates.
Analysts highlighted catalysts including USDC growth, enterprise partnerships, new payment corridors, Arc testnet, and MiCA rollout, while manageable risks include yield compression, Coinbase distribution, competition, and regulatory changes. Shares traded around $134.40 in early sessions.
