USDC news

Circle Internet Group and Polymarket have announced a partnership to move the prediction market’s settlement infrastructure to native USDC, replacing the bridged stablecoin collateral used on the platform. The shift will use a USDC issued and redeemed directly by Circle, offering a consistent, dollar‑denominated settlement standard that enhances market integrity and reliability as participation grows. Polymarket, a leading on‑chain prediction market, allows users to trade contracts tied to real‑world events using stablecoins; USDC is currently the second‑largest stablecoin after Tether.

Polymarket, the largest fully on‑chain prediction market, announced it will replace the bridged USDC.e token used on Polygon with native USDC, thanks to a partnership with Circle. Circle will introduce the native Polymarket‑USDC in the coming months, allowing all trading activity, order placement and settlement to occur directly on Polygon without cross‑chain swaps. The move is expected to speed transactions and improve user experience, as native USDC is already issued on about 30 chains, and Circle plans to deepen native support on high‑impact networks.

In January 2026, stablecoins processed over $10 trillion on‑chain, with USDC handling $8.4 trillion—more than Visa and Mastercard combined. The spike signals a shift toward regulated digital dollars, but market sentiment has not followed. Despite the surge, Circle’s shares have fallen about 80% from a seven‑month high, as investors view the firm more as fintech than core infrastructure. Analysts argue the valuation ignores the projected $1,000 trillion stablecoin addressable market and the near‑$310 billion supply of liquid assets.

Mizuho Securities upgraded Circle Internet Group’s rating to neutral and raised its price target to $77 after noting that Polymarket’s use of USDC for settlement could boost the stablecoin’s market cap and Circle’s revenue. The firm highlighted that Polymarket’s growing user base pulls non‑crypto natives into crypto, doubled USDC’s market cap from $30 B to over $60 B in early 2025, and expects further growth in the next 1‑2 years, citing regulatory clarity and institutional use as drivers.

Bitwise Asset Management has launched its first on‑chain vault strategy via the decentralized lending protocol Morpho, targeting up to 6% yield on USDC by deploying capital into over‑collateralized lending markets. The firm will oversee strategy design and risk management while users’ funds remain non‑custodial on‑chain. Bitwise plans to broaden the offering to other stablecoins and DeFi strategies such as liquidity provision and yield farming, positioning its vaults as ‘ETFs 2.0’ to make DeFi yield more accessible to institutional investors.

Tokenized U.S. Treasuries hit a $10 billion mark, signalling the category’s move from experiment to core infrastructure. Circle’s USYC product now tops BlackRock’s BUIDL, reflecting a shift in the market where distribution and collateral design outweigh brand weight. USYC grew 11% in the last month while BUIDL fell 2.85%, driven by Binance’s off‑exchange collateral integration, an accumulating‑interest structure, and a $100,000 minimum that opens the product to non‑U.S. investors—advantages that BlackRock’s $5 million Qualified Purchaser rule does not provide.

Jeremy Allaire, Circle CEO, said stablecoin adoption is accelerating, projecting a 40% compound annual growth rate for USDC as banks transition from experimentation to production, citing increasing volumes on Visa and Mastercard networks and growing payments and settlement use. He stressed that the industry has moved past debates over stablecoins' place in finance and now focuses on scaling real-world use, while noting regulatory distinctions around rewards. The outlook aligns with ARK Invest's forecast of stablecoins displacing other crypto use cases in emerging markets.

Bermuda announced a plan to run its economy largely on‑chain with USDC, piloting stablecoin payments for government fees, local banks, insurers and residents while keeping the current consumer payment experience unchanged. The move, touted as a “fully on‑chain national economy”, is limited to a few pilots and lacks publicly disclosed adoption figures, cost savings or timelines, leaving its true impact unclear.

Sei has warned holders of USDC.n, the legacy version of USDC bridged from Noble, to exchange it for the native USDC before the network’s March SIP‑3 upgrade. The upgrade will make Sei an EVM‑only chain and drop Cosmos‑native assets, which could render USDC.n inaccessible or lose value. Roughly $1.4 million remains in USDC.n on Sei, down from several million as users move to the native token. Sei recommends small swaps via DragonSwap or Symphony and larger conversions through Brr’s batch tool that moves assets from Noble to Polygon and back to Sei using Circle’s CCTP. Circle recently invested in Sei, making it the main deployment platform for USDC in the Cosmos ecosystem.

Coinbase will suspend peso-to-USDC conversions and bank transfers in Argentina from Jan 31, giving users a 30-day window to withdraw funds. The change blocks Argentinians from buying USDC amid triple-digit inflation. The move is not a permanent exit but a pause to reassess strategy. It deprives a market where stablecoins make up to 80% of crypto traffic, dominated by Tether, hampering Argentina's digital-finance push. Crypto-to-crypto trading stays active, but the loss of fiat rails cuts Coinbase's core utility for daily savers, potentially relegating it to a niche venue.