The global financial system is entering a phase of restructuring. Capital markets and the digital economy are transitioning to native internet infrastructure, a process supported by regulators, banks, and institutional players. In this context, stablecoins are becoming the foundation of this new regulated financial infrastructure.
According to a report by Circle, stablecoins moved beyond the category of crypto instruments and into the realm of core financial infrastructure. The report states that regulated stablecoins, primarily USDC, serve as the internet’s monetary layer and are becoming the backbone of real-time global financial operations.
Circle analysts argue that 2025 marked a stage of global consensus for the crypto industry, as stablecoins were recognized as a form of digital money with strict requirements for reserves, reporting, and compliance. According to the document, the adoption of the GENIUS Act in the U.S., the launch of the MiCA bill in the EU, and similar regulations in several Asian and Middle Eastern jurisdictions established the status of stablecoins as fully backed payment instruments. As a result, banks, payment companies, and institutional investors began to view them not as an experiment but as part of the core financial infrastructure.
Jeremy Allaire, Founder and CEO of Circle, noted in his address to the report’s readers that the changes underway extend far beyond the digital asset market. According to him, public blockchains are transforming from an experimental environment into a reliable platform for verifiable transactions, programmable contracts, and global economic coordination, through which transactions worth trillions of dollars will eventually be processed.
The report also emphasizes that the focus of development is shifting from retail crypto use cases to infrastructure-level applications, as stablecoins are increasingly used in cross-border B2B payments, corporate treasury management, clearing, margin collateral, and repo operations outside traditional banking hours.
As a separate driver of future development and market growth, Circle analysts highlight the tokenization of real-world assets (RWA). According to their estimates, the volume of tokenized government securities exceeded $8 billion in 2025. The report notes that tokenized money market funds are laying the groundwork for the integration of capital markets with on-chain infrastructure. At the same time, Circle’s multi-product, open, regulated, and programmable ecosystem is positioned to become the foundation of the next stage in the development of the global financial system.
Circle’s infrastructure includes USDC as one of the largest stablecoins by market cap, the Circle Payments Network, and the Arc blockchain platform, whose test version was launched in mid-2025.
In the report, the company also shared its key 2025 achievements in figures, including:
- on-chain USDC transaction volume in Q3 2025 reached $10 trillion, up 680% YoY;
- cumulative settlement volume using USDC since launch exceeded $50 trillion;
- USDC circulation grew by 108% YoY;
- USDC accounted for 29% of the dollar-pegged stablecoin market by circulating supply and 40% by transaction activity;
- approximately $217 billion worth of USDC was redeemed over the year;
- Circle Mint infrastructure covered more than 185 countries;
- the number of wallets holding more than $10 in USDC grew to 6.3 million;
- USDC is natively supported on 30 blockchains;
- the volume of the tokenized securities fund USYC exceeded $1 billion;
- annual turnover of the Circle Payments Network reached $3.4 billion.
In 2025, Circle announced the launch of two new institutional products, the StableFX foreign exchange mechanism and the Partner Stablecoins program aimed at supporting regional stablecoins, designed to accelerate the transition of the global FX market to a digital, programmable infrastructure.
For more details on the stablecoin market’s performance in 2025, including key figures and facts, see the special analytical report by CP Media.
