Circle Raises $222m In Arc Token Presale As Blackrock And Sbi Holdings Lead Institutional Charge

Circle has closed a $222 million presale of the $ARC token, the native asset of its new institutional blockchain, Arc, at a fully diluted valuation of $3 billion. The raise is notable not only for its size but because it marks the first time a publicly listed company has conducted a token presale of this kind.

a16z crypto led the round with a $75 million commitment. The broader investor syndicate included BlackRock, Apollo Funds, Intercontinental Exchange (the NYSE parent), SBI Holdings, Janus Henderson Investors, Standard Chartered Ventures, General Catalyst, Marshall Wace, ARK Invest, IDG Capital, Haun Ventures, and Bullish.

What Is the Arc Blockchain?

Arc is a public, institutional-grade Layer 1 blockchain built around USDC as its native gas token. According to Circle's white paper, published on May 11, 2026, the ARC token serves as the coordination asset for the network, covering governance, validator security, and economic alignment across the protocol. The chain is designed to deliver sub-second deterministic finality, opt-in privacy controls for regulatory compliance, and full EVM compatibility.

Arc's public testnet went live in October 2025, attracting more than 100 institutional participants including BlackRock, Visa, Goldman Sachs, HSBC, and Amazon Web Services. By February 2026, the testnet had processed more than 166 million transactions. Circle has also outlined post-quantum signature support for wallets and validators at mainnet launch, which it describes as a baseline requirement for institutional adoption.

Of Arc's 10 billion token supply, 60% is allocated to network users, developers, and contributors. Circle retains 25% to operate validator infrastructure and earn staking income, with the remaining 15% held in long-term reserve. Investor terms include lock-ups of at least one year following the chain's transition to proof-of-stake, with potential holds extending to four years.

Circle's Broader Ambitions

The Arc announcement arrived alongside Circle's Q1 2026 earnings. Total revenue and reserve income reached $694 million, up 20% year over year, while USDC in circulation grew 28% to $77 billion. Onchain USDC transaction volume hit $21.5 trillion for the quarter, a 263% jump from the prior year. Net income came in at $55 million, though it fell 15% as post-IPO stock compensation pushed operating expenses higher.

Today, USDC relies heavily on networks like Ethereum and Solana for settlement. Arc is designed to reduce that dependency by giving Circle direct ownership of the infrastructure its stablecoin runs on. CEO Jeremy Allaire has also pointed to the role of AI agents in future financial systems, noting that autonomous software could eventually handle payments, treasury management, and contracts using USDC-powered blockchain infrastructure.

Sources:
CNBC: Circle raises $222 million from BlackRock, Apollo and others in Arc token presale
The Block: Circle raises $222M in Arc token presale at $3B FDV