Circle Cuts About 5% of Staff as Q3 Revenue Rises 17% on One-Time ARC Presale
Circle, the issuer of USDC, cut about 5% of its workforce and booked a $9.1 million restructuring charge in a quarter when revenue rose 17% to $865 million. Sources differ on how much of that growth is recurring, with core reserve income down 8% and the company's own filings attributing the gain largely to a one-time token presale.
Written by CoinArticle’s AI Newsroom · from 2 cited sources. How we work
What Circle Disclosed
Circle cut about 5% of its workforce in the third quarter, according to footnotes to its earnings release. The company said the reduction was "designed to better align our organizational structure with our operating model and strategic priorities," but did not say how many employees were affected or which teams were cut. The layoffs were not listed among the quarter's business highlights, and CEO Jeremy Allaire did not mention them in his comments on the results.
The company recorded $9.1 million in restructuring expenses, mostly cash payments for notice periods, severance and benefits. That was partly offset by a $5.7 million reversal of stock-based compensation, because unvested shares held by departing employees were forfeited.
Headline Growth and Its Sources
Circle reported total revenue and reserve income of $865 million, up 17% year over year, and net income from continuing operations of $226 million, up 5%. Adjusted EBITDA rose 85% to $317 million. Both sources agree on these figures, but they weigh them differently.
The growth depends heavily on one item. Other revenue rose to $207 million from $29 million, and $182 million of that came from the private presale of ARC, the token for Circle's Arc blockchain. Bitcoin Magazine's reading is that without the presale, total revenue would have declined. Decrypt reports the same $182 million figure but frames the quarter as profitable on its own terms. The source material does not give a full ex-presale revenue figure, so the size of the decline Bitcoin Magazine describes cannot be independently confirmed from these reports.
Core Business Under Pressure
Reserve income, the interest Circle earns on assets backing USDC and its largest revenue line, fell 8% to $658 million. Bitcoin Magazine attributes the drop to the reserve return rate falling 61 basis points to 3.5%. Average USDC in circulation rose 8% to $73.3 billion, but quarter-end circulation was flat year over year at $73.9 billion. Circle's share of the U.S. dollar stablecoin market slipped to 27%, per the company.
On the cost side, operating expenses rose 16% to $245 million, while distribution costs, the fees Circle pays partners such as Coinbase to hold USDC, fell 8% to $409 million.
Market Reaction and Context
Bitcoin Magazine reported CRCL shares slipped about 1.2% in premarket trading to $74.33 after gaining 4.4% the previous day, and noted the stock trades well below its highs after its June 2025 IPO.
The cuts come as Circle builds out. The Arc public mainnet launched in September with more than 100 institutional builders, and Circle agreed to acquire Tazapay, a Singapore cross-border payments platform, in a deal expected to close in 2027. Allaire has said the company plans to enter about 40 emerging markets. Circle is also one of several crypto firms to reduce staff this year, following cuts at Coinbase, the Ethereum Foundation, BitGo, Luno and Bitwise.
Allaire pointed to USDC carrying 79% of stablecoin transaction volume, up from 66% a year earlier, and to the payments network reaching $41 billion in annualized volume. He tied the outlook to the GENIUS Act, which takes effect in January and sets federal licensing and reserve rules for stablecoin issuers. Circle has said its stablecoins will qualify under that regime.
What Remains Open
The quarter shows a company with strong reported profit growth and a core business whose yield-driven income is shrinking. Whether a smaller headcount and the one-time presale can carry the company until lower rates stop eroding reserve income is the open question the reports leave unresolved.
Why It Matters
For Traders
Reserve income fell 8% as yields dropped, so watch whether CRCL's post-earnings move reflects the one-time presale or the weaker core run rate.
For Investors
Circle's reported growth leans on a one-time token presale while its core yield income declines, a mix that matters for valuing the business over the next year.
For Builders
Circle's reliance on partner distribution fees and reserve yields shows how stablecoin issuer economics shift as rates fall, which affects any protocol built on USDC revenue assumptions.
This article is for information only and is not financial advice. Read the full disclaimer.
