USDC functions as a dollar-denominated settlement asset on public blockchains. Common uses include real-time payments, cross-border transfers, treasury operations and on-chain market activity where a stable unit of account is required. Circle’s materials describe adoption across payments, digital asset markets and humanitarian disbursements, with businesses integrating USDC into commerce and payout flows.

Payments and commerce: Businesses use USDC for accepting and sending payments that settle on-chain in seconds, without card schemes or correspondent banking in the loop. Circle positions USDC for low-cost global payments and merchant acceptance through partner gateways; consumer resources show spend paths (e.g., pay online/in-app or via crypto payment processors).

Cross-border transfers and remittances: USDC is used to move funds across jurisdictions with on-chain settlement, often bridging traditional rails on entry/exit. Circle’s case studies highlight remittance firms and B2B payment providers using USDC to improve settlement speed and reconciliation across markets.

Treasury and working capital: Enterprises and fintechs hold operational balances in USDC to denominate receivables/payables, sweep between venues, and manage intra-day liquidity. Circle’s product pages emphasise holding, transferring and rebalancing USDC across chains and borders for operational needs.

Market infrastructure and trading: On exchanges and DeFi protocols, USDC serves as a base asset for quoting pairs, posting collateral, settling trades and accessing liquidity without converting to fiat between transactions. Circle’s reports refer to substantial usage in digital asset markets. (Protocol-specific risks are outside the scope of USDC itself.)

Programmable finance and multichain interoperability: Developers embed USDC in smart contracts for escrow, payouts, subscriptions and automated flows. Where activity spans multiple chains, Circle’s Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol (CCTP) enables native burn-and-mint transfers of USDC, avoiding wrapped representations and helping keep a single canonical supply across supported networks.

Consumer peer-to-peer transfers and everyday spending: USDC can be sent wallet-to-wallet globally and, via supported payment gateways, spent at participating merchants; Circle’s consumer site documents ways to spend USDC and links to ecosystem providers. Availability varies by region and venue.

Programme disbursements and aid: Circle’s annual State of the USDC Economy reports cite deployments of USDC for targeted disbursements and aid payments, leveraging transparent on-chain delivery and near-instant settlement.

Multichain deployment across sectors: With native issuance on multiple networks, USDC is used in payments, payroll, consumer apps and sector-specific tooling (e.g., social, AI, DeSci) depending on the capabilities of each chain’s ecosystem. Circle’s multichain pages outline chain-specific contexts and addresses.

USDC is designed to maintain a stable value of one US dollar per token and is not intended for capital appreciation, so it should not be treated as a speculative investment. It is best understood as a transactional, dollar-denominated settlement asset.

USDC itself is not an interest-bearing instrument. Circle’s USDC Terms specify that while reserves may be held in interest-bearing accounts or other yield-generating instruments, holders are not entitled to any interest or other returns earned on those funds. Any “yield” a user may receive comes from separate third-party venues or programmes (for example, exchange products or DeFi protocols) that sit outside USDC and carry their own counterparty, smart-contract and market risks. Circle also offers distinct products (such as USYC) that are designed to bear yield; these are separate from USDC and have different terms and risk disclosures.

Whether USDC qualifies as a cash equivalent for a particular holder is an accounting determination under the relevant reporting framework. Under IFRS IAS 7, cash equivalents are short-term, highly liquid investments that are readily convertible to known amounts of cash and subject to insignificant risk of changes in value (typically with maturities of three months or less at acquisition). Classification therefore depends on the holder’s facts and policies (for example, settlement intent, liquidity horizon and the reliability of access to fiat off-ramps or redemption), not on the token alone.

Operationally, holders should distinguish price stability from risk-free return. USDC targets stability via fully reserved backing and disclosure, but holding USDC introduces other non-price risks, including:

• reliance on supported blockchains and token contracts
• venue and custody risk when using third-party platforms
• compliance controls such as blocked-address policies set out in Circle’s legal terms
• timelines, fees and eligibility criteria for direct redemption

These considerations affect whether USDC behaves like a “cash equivalent” in practice for a given user.

Issuance (tokenising USD): New USDC is created (“minted”) when eligible customers deposit fiat with Circle (or a designated affiliate) via supported bank rails and instruct issuance. Circle provides Circle Mint (UI/API) for enterprise onboarding, bank connectivity and on-chain distribution. For each 1 USDC issued, Circle holds an equivalent amount of U.S. dollar-denominated assets in segregated USDC reserves, as described in its legal and product documentation.

Redemption (issuer-level mechanism): USDC is redeemed when an authorised account instructs the issuer to redeem; the corresponding tokens are burned and fiat is paid to the linked bank account according to service terms and cut-off windows. Eligibility, user types (e.g., Circle Mint vs non-Mint) and consumer pathways are covered in “How can businesses and individuals obtain and redeem USDC?”.

Reserve structure and custody: USDC is fully reserved. The majority of reserves is held in the Circle Reserve Fund (USDXX), an SEC-registered Rule 2a-7 government money market fund managed by BlackRock; the portfolio can include cash, short-dated U.S. Treasuries and overnight U.S. Treasury repurchase agreements, with daily third-party reporting available via BlackRock. The remainder is held in cash across large regulated banks; the fund’s custodian is The Bank of New York Mellon.

Transparency and assurance: Circle publishes monthly USDC reserve attestation reports and maintains a transparency page describing reserve composition and banking connectivity. Deloitte & Touche LLP is noted as Circle’s independent auditor for corporate financial statements. Documentation and terms differ by region and user type; see the access section for links to the USDC Terms, Circle Mint terms and the EEA MiCA materials.

Banking connectivity and liquidity operations: Circle highlights deep connectivity to the banking system to support timely creation and redemption of USDC across regions (e.g., wires and SEPA via Circle Mint). Circle discloses that, over the 12 months ending 12 October 2023, it bridged more than $277 billion between the banking system and blockchains through minting and redeeming USDC.

Elastic supply: Circulating supply expands via mint (fiat in) and contracts via burn (fiat out). For cross-chain movement mechanics, see “How does USDC move between blockchains (CCTP)?”

Fees and limits: For issuer and network fees, limits and timing, see “What fees, limits and timings apply to minting, redemption and transfers?”

Direct access for businesses (Circle Mint): Eligible institutions obtain and redeem USDC directly with the issuer via Circle Mint. After onboarding and compliance checks, customers fund via supported bank rails (e.g., wires/SEPA), mint USDC 1:1, distribute on-chain through the UI/API, and redeem back to fiat; redeemed USDC is burned and fiat is paid out to the linked bank account per service terms and cut-off windows. Circle states that Circle Mint is available only to institutions and not available to individuals. Documentation covers onboarding, supported chains, countries and operational flows.

Indirect access for individuals (secondary market): Individuals do not mint or redeem directly with Circle. They typically acquire USDC through wallets, applications or exchanges that support native USDC on the desired chain, and convert back to fiat using the platform’s withdrawal rails. Before depositing or withdrawing, verify the token’s official contract address or identifier for the relevant network using Circle’s USDC Contract Addresses page.

Redemption rights and documentation (EEA and rest of world): Outside the EEA, usage is governed by the USDC Terms and direct mint/redeem is limited to eligible Circle Mint customers. Within the EEA, USDC is issued by Circle Internet Financial Europe SAS as an e-money token (EMT) under MiCA; the USDC MiCA White Paper and the MiCA Redemption Policy set out holder rights, conditions and procedures for redemption at par. The Redemption Policy notes that holders may buy/sell via retail exchanges and, if refused or if they specifically wish to redeem with Circle Europe, they can follow the policy’s process to redeem directly with Circle Europe SAS.

Multichain considerations (issuer tools and native transfers): Circle Mint supports moving USDC across supported blockchains for institutional customers, and Circle documents chain-specific guidance (e.g., NEAR, Celo, Base). For all users, native cross-chain transfers rely on CCTP (burn on source, mint on destination) and should be preferred over third-party “lock-and-mint” bridges when available; full mechanics are covered in the CCTP section.

Key operational checks (before moving funds): Confirm eligibility (business vs individual); ensure you are interacting with native USDC on the target chain by validating the contract/mint against Circle’s official list; review the governing legal documents for your region; and confirm current service availability and supported chains/countries in Circle’s docs. Detailed fees, limits and timing are addressed in the dedicated fees section.

Circle maintains two canonical references: the Multichain USDC directory and the USDC Contract Addresses page. As of today, Circle states that USDC is natively issued on 27 blockchain networks. Always verify the contract address or chain-specific identifier against these pages (testnet tokens have no financial value).

On EVM chains, USDC is an ERC-20 smart-contract token; on non-EVM chains it uses the chain’s native primitives—for example Solana (SPL mint), Stellar (issuer asset), Hedera (HTS token) and XRPL (native USDC now live). Circle’s chain pages and docs describe the native form and warn against sending bridged tokens to Circle Mint.

Native vs bridged USDC:

• Native USDC is issued by Circle and is the only form supported for mint/redeem via Circle Mint and Circle’s APIs.
• Bridged USDC is created by third-party bridges and is not issued by Circle. Naming conventions vary by ecosystem and venue; some bridges append a suffix (e.g., “USDC.e” on Avalanche, and historically on Polygon PoS prior to the native launch), while others retain the “USDC” ticker. Do not rely on the name—verify the official address/identifier on Circle’s contracts page.

Circle’s Bridged USDC Standard lets new ecosystems bootstrap with a bridged token whose contract can later be upgraded in place to native USDC if Circle elects to proceed. Linea’s upgrade provides a public case study of this process.

Support changes and deprecations. Network support can change and is announced by Circle:

• TRON: minting ceased 21 Feb 2024; through Feb 2025 Circle Mint customers can transfer to other chains or redeem to fiat.
• Flow: support discontinued 3 Sep 2024 with a balance snapshot and manual redemptions per the notice.

Practical verification steps. Start from Circle’s USDC Contract Addresses to copy the canonical address/identifier for the target chain; cross-check in an explorer; treat any non-matching contract or bridged/wrapped label as not native; and consult Multichain USDC for chain-specific FAQs and any migration notices. Prefer Circle’s CCTP for inter-chain movement to keep a single native supply (covered next).

Start from the authoritative list, not the ticker: Go first to Circle’s official USDC Contract Addresses page and locate the canonical contract address or identifier for your target chain (ERC-20 on EVMs, SPL mint on Solana, issuer asset on Stellar, HTS on Hedera, XRPL token, etc.). Treat this page as source of truth; testnets listed there are for development only.

Cross-check in a reputable block explorer: Paste the address/identifier from Circle into the chain’s main explorer and verify the token entry matches. Do not rely on the symbol “USDC” or on explorer “verified” badges or logos—these can be mimicked. The address/identifier must exactly match Circle’s page.

Confirm how the token was created on that chain: Native USDC is issued by Circle on each supported network and is the only form redeemable via Circle Mint and supported by Circle APIs. If a token was minted by a third-party bridge (lock-and-mint) rather than by Circle, it is bridged, not native. Circle’s docs and chain pages make this distinction explicit.

Beware naming conventions—addresses decide: Bridged tokens sometimes keep the “USDC” ticker; some ecosystems historically added suffixes (e.g., USDC.e on Avalanche, and on Polygon PoS prior to native USDC). Because names vary by bridge and venue, never infer nativeness from the label; always resolve to Circle’s official address/identifier.

Use Circle’s Multichain USDC directory for context: For each network, Circle provides a dedicated page with FAQs, links and notes about the native form and supported tooling; use it alongside the contracts list when setting up wallets, deposits or withdrawals.

Check CCTP compatibility on supported routes: On chains where CCTP is available, native USDC moves cross-chain by burn-and-mint. If a chain pair is CCTP-supported but a given token cannot be used with CCTP, you may be holding a bridged representation. (Not all USDC networks are on CCTP; verify supported routes first.)

Review network notices for exceptions or wind-downs: Network support can change. Circle has published deprecation notices—for example, TRON (minting ceased 21 Feb 2024, with institutional transfers/redemptions supported through Feb 2025) and Flow (support ended 3 Sep 2024 with freeze and snapshot). If a network is in wind-down, follow the official migration guidance.

Quick verification checklist (practical):

1. Copy the address/identifier from USDC Contract Addresses.
2. Confirm the same address/identifier in the chain’s explorer.
3. In any wallet/app, compare the token address shown to Circle’s canonical one.
4. For cross-chain moves, prefer CCTP where available; avoid third-party bridges when native routes exist.
5. If anything conflicts (different address, unsupported by Circle Mint/APIs, or listed in a deprecation notice), treat it as not native and consult the Circle pages above.

Circle’s Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol (CCTP) moves native USDC between supported blockchains by burning USDC on the source chain and minting the same amount on the destination chain. This avoids wrapped representations and keeps a single canonical supply across networks. CCTP is permissionless for developers to integrate.

Core components (CCTP V2)

On each supported domain (Circle’s identifier for a chain), CCTP deploys contracts that handle token burns and message passing:

• TokenMessengerV2 — user/app calls to burn USDC and emit a cross-chain message (e.g., depositForBurn or depositForBurnWithHook).
• MessageTransmitterV2 — transports the message and verifies the attestation from Circle’s attestation service (“Iris”) before minting on the destination.

Destination apps implement handlers to accept messages at a chosen finality threshold.

Transfer lifecycle (V2, high level)

1. Approve & burn on source: App calls depositForBurn or depositForBurnWithHook on TokenMessengerV2, specifying amount, destination domain and recipient on the destination chain.
2. Attestation: The burn emits a message that Circle’s attestation service observes and signs; apps poll for the attestation and submit it on the destination.
3. Receive & mint on destination: App submits message + attestation to MessageTransmitterV2, which verifies the signature and calls the recipient to mint native USDC to the specified address. Messages are single-use per nonce and domain pair.

Finality choices and hooks (V2). V2 introduces:

• Finality thresholds — callers set minFinalityThreshold (e.g., Confirmed vs Finalized). Destination handlers use handleReceiveUnfinalizedMessage or handleReceiveFinalizedMessage accordingly.
• Hooks — depositForBurnWithHook lets apps attach hookData so that on-receipt logic (e.g., contract calls) can execute atomically with mint.

These changes streamline V1’s manual steps and give apps control over when to accept a message.

Supported chains and domains: CCTP operates on a set of domains (mainnets and testnets) defined by Circle; some domains may support other Circle assets (e.g., USYC) rather than USDC. Always consult the CCTP Supported Blockchains page for the live list and domain IDs.

Fees and who pays: CCTP transfers incur gas fees on the source and destination chains. Apps that integrate CCTP determine how these fees are handled for end-users. (Some V2 paths also expose a standard/fast mode with fee parameters at the contract level.) For pricing terms beyond on-chain gas, refer to Circle’s fee materials.

Security model and assurances: CCTP relies on an off-chain attestation service that signs burn messages; on-chain contracts verify this attestation before minting. Independent auditors have reviewed CCTP’s contracts; operators can rotate attesters via governance to manage key risk. Integrations should also handle chain reorgs and choose appropriate finality thresholds.

Operational boundaries:

• CCTP moves only native USDC between supported domains; it does not bridge third-party stablecoins or wrapped forms. Verify that both chains and route are CCTP-supported before initiating a transfer.
• If a chain is being deprecated for USDC, follow Circle’s notices and use documented migration paths; CCTP may be part of those flows where available.

Developer references (for implementers): Contract interfaces, message formats, example apps and the REST endpoints for message/attestation retrieval are provided in Circle’s developer documentation and GitHub examples.

Verify the native token before anything else: Begin at Circle’s authoritative USDC Contract Addresses page and copy the canonical contract address or chain-specific identifier for your target network. Treat this list as source of truth; testnets are for development and have no financial value. Cross-check the address/identifier in the chain’s primary explorer before deposits or withdrawals.

Match custody to the network’s token model: USDC is a smart-contract token on EVM chains (ERC-20), but uses different primitives on other networks. Wallet setup and “account initialisation” therefore differ by chain:

• Solana (SPL): hold USDC in an Associated Token Account (ATA) for the USDC mint; many wallets create the ATA on first receipt, but you can create/verify it yourself.
• Stellar: you must establish a trustline to the USDC issuer before your account can hold the asset.
• Hedera (HTS): your account must associate with the USDC token ID before it can receive or hold it.
• XRPL: set a trust line to the USDC issuing account to be able to receive/hold the token.

Prefer self-custody or custodians that let you validate contracts and routes: Whether you use self-custody (hardware/MPC/software with strong key controls) or a custodian/exchange, ensure the venue (i) supports the exact native USDC for the chain you use, (ii) publishes deposit/withdrawal routes for that chain, and (iii) displays the same contract/mint/issuer ID as Circle’s list. If a venue only supports a different chain than the one you hold, move funds natively using CCTP first (see the CCTP section) rather than third-party wrapping.

Manage allowances and signing carefully on EVM networks: USDC on EVM chains follows ERC-20 allowance semantics (approve/transferFrom) and also implements permit (EIP-2612) and transferWithAuthorization (EIP-3009) for signature-based approvals/transfers. Periodically review and reduce/revoke unnecessary allowances; use permit/authorisation flows only with software you trust and understand.

Understand issuer controls and legal terms that can affect custody: Circle’s legal materials describe circumstances where transfers involving Blocked Addresses may be restricted under the blacklisting policy. All USDC holders are subject to the USDC Terms; institutional users of Circle Mint have additional terms. Storage and use should account for these policies alongside your jurisdiction’s rules.

Plan for network changes and follow official notices: Circle may change support on specific networks (for example, TRON minting ceased on 21 Feb 2024; Flow support ended 3 Sep 2024). When support changes, follow Circle’s migration guidance and verify the destination’s native contract/identifier before moving funds.

Practical checklist (per deposit/withdrawal):

1. Copy the official USDC contract/identifier for your chain from Circle’s list.
2. Ensure your wallet/account is initialised for that chain’s token model (ATA on Solana; trustline on Stellar/XRPL; association on Hedera).
3. In the venue/wallet UI, confirm the displayed token address/issuer exactly matches Circle’s canonical entry.
4. If you must switch chains, prefer CCTP (burn-and-mint native USDC) over third-party bridges.
5. After using apps on EVM chains, review allowances and revoke those no longer required.

This approach keeps custody aligned with each network’s mechanics while anchoring all verification to Circle’s canonical contracts and policies.

Issuer-facing fees (Circle Mint):

• Custody: Circle states it does not currently charge custody fees for holding USDC/EURC in a Circle Mint account; any yield on reserves is retained by Circle.
• Network (on-chain) fees: When sending USDC from a Circle account to a blockchain address, network fees apply and vary by chain conditions; Circle passes through the actual network fee incurred.
• Bank/rail fees: Fiat deposits/withdrawals can incur fees charged by the bank or payment rail used; review your bank’s schedule and your Circle Mint agreement.

Redemption structure (tiers, limits, timing):

• Standard redemptions: documented as near-instant processing and free below a $ / € 2 million net redemption threshold per business day. Circle shows Estimated Redemption Fee, gross/net burn amounts and Fee History in the Circle Mint dashboard. Amounts above the threshold incur a fee (rate displayed in your account).
• Visibility & reporting: Circle provides a fee schedule and (for developers) a daily reports endpoint for redemption fees. Exact fees and cut-offs are surfaced in the account UI and related docs.

On-chain transfers between blockchains (CCTP):

• Gas on both chains: CCTP transfers pay gas on the source and destination chains; integrators decide how gas costs are handled for end-users.

• CCTP V2 on-chain mint fee: In V2, an on-chain mint fee is charged when USDC is minted on the destination chain. Fees depend on route and mode; fetch the current fee via GET /v2/burn/USDC/fees before each transfer.

  • Fast Transfer (attested at “Confirmed”) — example current fee rates by source chain (subject to change): Ethereum, Base, Solana, Arbitrum, OP Mainnet, Codex, Unichain, World Chain: 1 bps; Linea: 14 bps. Some chains don’t support Fast mode because Standard is already fast.
  • Standard Transfer (attested at “Finalized”) — many routes show 0 bps mint fee; some chains can enforce a Standard Transfer fee switch (e.g., Sei) via getMinFeeAmount. Always check the live tables.

Timings and cut-offs:

• Mint/redeem windows: Processing depends on bank rails (e.g., wires/SEPA) and Circle’s operational windows; near-instant applies to Standard redemptions within tier limits, while bank settlement still follows rail timelines. Refer to your account’s cut-off guidance.
• Service status: For real-time incidents or maintenance that could affect timings (on/off-ramp, specific chains), check Circle Status.

Where fees show up (practical):

• Circle Mint dashboard: shows Estimated Redemption Fee before submitting, plus Fee History; network fees for on-chain sends are itemised per transaction.
• Help Centre schedules: issuer fee policies, network-fee FAQs and developer fee schedules (e.g., for wallets/services) are maintained in the Help Centre.

Scope and caveats: Figures and fee tables are subject to change; rely on Circle’s fee schedule, redemption structure article and CCTP fees documentation at the time of use. Third-party venues may add their own fees and limits; those are outside the issuer’s schedule.

EVM implementation (FiatToken): On EVM networks, USDC is implemented as an upgradeable ERC-20 (“FiatToken”, current family FiatTokenV2.x) deployed behind a proxy. The implementation exposes signed-message transfer and approval extensions and role-based controls.

Key elements:

• Upgradeable proxy: a proxy delegates calls to the current implementation; Circle documents deploy/upgrade procedures and one-time initialisation to secure roles.
• Signed approvals and transfers: USDC implements EIP-2612 permit for gasless allowance updates and EIP-3009 transferWithAuthorization/receiveWithAuthorization for signature-authorised transfers/cancellations.
• Pause & blacklist modifiers: contract logic gates state-changing functions with whenNotPaused and blacklist checks. Pausing halts transfers/mint/burn; blacklist prevents an address from sending/receiving. (V1 modules Pausable.sol and Blacklistable.sol; V2.x integrates these checks.)

Roles and privileges (FiatToken): Circle’s standard defines distinct administrative roles; the owner manages role assignment and upgrades:

• masterMinter — configures the set of authorised minters and their mint allowances; minters can mint and burn within allowance.
• pauser — may pause/unpause the token contract, halting transfers, minting and burning while paused.
• blacklister — may designate and clear blacklisted addresses that are then blocked from transfers.
• owner / proxy admin — may update role addresses and perform implementation upgrades via the proxy according to the documented upgrade flow.

Legal/operational linkage (blocked addresses & policy): The on-chain blacklist controls align with Circle’s USDC Terms, which reserve the right to block transfers to/from Blocked Addresses and reference a separate blacklisting policy. Terms also warn about forks/copies/wrappers and note that Circle may suspend activity or migrate contracts in certain events.

Non-EVM implementations (network-native controls): USDC uses each chain’s native token model and account controls:

• Solana (SPL): token mint with program-level controls; Circle additionally documents pre-mint arrangements for programmatic minting used by CCTP/Gateway.
• Stellar: issued as a Stellar asset by Circle’s issuer account; holding requires a trustline to that issuer.
• Hedera (HTS): issued as a Hedera Token Service asset; accounts must associate with the token before receiving it.

(USDC contract/issuer identifiers for all supported networks are listed on Circle’s USDC Contract Addresses page.)

Developer-facing extensions used by Circle products: Circle’s own smart-contract products (e.g., Gateway) rely on the above primitives: deposits can use permit (EIP-2612) or ERC-3009 authorisations; a separate attestation system governs minting on destination chains while preserving 1:1 burns. This confirms the availability of USDC’s signed-message flows in production integrations.

Notes on testing and versions: Circle’s repository includes tests around blacklist state and internal balance accounting, plus versioned upgrade docs (e.g., V2.1/V2.2 initialisers). Consult the repo’s docs and tests when validating behaviour on specific chains or versions.

Practical verification for implementers:

• Start from Circle’s USDC Contract Addresses to copy the canonical address/identifier.
• Inspect the token in a block explorer to confirm proxy + implementation bytecode pattern and role events.
• Review permit/ERC-3009 method availability on the live contract ABI.
• Map admin events (role updates, pauses) to your monitoring/alerts.

This section focuses on token-level mechanics; network support changes, cross-chain transfer (CCTP) and fee/timing policies are covered in their respective sections.

USDC has a dual-issuer model. Outside the European Economic Area (EEA), USDC is issued by Circle Internet Financial, LLC (Circle LLC) under U.S. money-transmission regimes and FinCEN MSB registration, governed by the USDC Terms and the Circle Mint User Agreement (for eligible institutions). Within the EEA, USDC is issued by Circle Internet Financial Europe SAS (Circle SAS) as a MiCA e-money token (EMT), governed by the USDC MiCA White Paper and the MiCA Redemption Policy.

European Economic Area (MiCA): USDC issued in the EEA is an EMT under Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 (MiCA). Circle SAS’s MiCA USDC White Paper sets the redemption right “at any time and at par value” for EEA residents and describes reserve backing, risks and disclosures. The MiCA Redemption Policy identifies Circle SAS’s supervisor and ACPR register number 17788, and sets procedural conditions for redemptions. Passporting of Circle SAS as an electronic money institution is reflected in public registers (e.g., De Nederlandsche Bank; Banco de Portugal).

United States (state money transmission + FinCEN): Outside the EEA, USDC is regulated as stored value / prepaid access under state money-transmitter laws. Circle lists its state licences and disclosures on a dedicated legal page, and states that the USDC Terms apply to persons outside the EEA. Circle is registered with FinCEN as a Money Services Business (MSB). (Classification of USDC for a holder’s accounting or prudential purposes depends on the holder’s own framework and is not prescribed by Circle.)

Singapore (MAS): Circle Internet Singapore Pte. Ltd. holds a Major Payment Institution (MPI) licence from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), allowing specified Digital Payment Token and money-transfer services in Singapore. Circle’s press release confirms the licence grant and scope for institutional access to USDC via local products and rails. (Operational availability is subject to MAS permissions and Circle’s product terms.)

United Kingdom (FCA frameworks): In the UK, cryptoasset AML/CTF registration under the Money Laundering Regulations (MLRs) and the financial promotions regime apply to in-scope firms. The FCA’s materials describe who must register and how authorisations for electronic money institutions (EMIs) and payment institutions work. This section does not assert a specific UK authorisation for a Circle entity; readers should consult the FCA Financial Services Register for any current permissions and the FCA guidance for in-scope activities.

Bermuda (BMA): A Circle affiliate in Bermuda holds a Class F Digital Asset Business Act (DABA) licence from the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA). This licence covers specified digital-asset activities (e.g., custody, exchange, issuance). While not specific to USDC’s EEA/U.S. issuance regimes, it is part of Circle’s regulatory footprint and governs certain group products and operations.

Key legal points for holders (cross-region):

• Redemption + documents: EEA holders rely on the MiCA White Paper and MiCA Redemption Policy (Circle SAS). Non-EEA holders rely on the USDC Terms (Circle LLC) and, for institutions, the Circle Mint User Agreement.
• No interest to holders: Circle’s legal materials state holders are not entitled to interest on reserves; any returns on reserves accrue to Circle. (Yield, if any, comes from separate third-party venues/products.)
• Not a bank deposit / insurance: USDC is not a bank deposit and is not covered by deposit-insurance schemes; disclosures are set out in the relevant legal documents.

For regional availability, licensing and terms, rely on the Circle Legal pages and the relevant regulatory registers cited above, as these are updated when authorisations or frameworks change.

Core product & transparency:

• USDC overview (issuer site): issuer, redemption statements, high-level docs hub. circle.com/usdc
• Transparency & attestations: weekly reserve composition/mint–burn data and monthly third-party attestations. circle.com/transparency

Networks & identifiers (authoritative):

• USDC Contract Addresses: canonical contract addresses/identifiers for every supported mainnet and testnet. Use this as source of truth. developers.circle.com/stablecoins/usdc-contract-addresses
• Multichain USDC directory: per-network pages, FAQs and links (context alongside the contracts list). circle.com/multi-chain-usdc

Mint/redeem & operational docs:

• Circle Mint docs (getting started/APIs): onboarding, API use, operational flows. developers.circle.com/circle-mint/getting-started-with-the-circle-apis
• Supported chains & currencies (Circle Mint): which chains/assets are supported by Circle Mint/APIs; warnings about bridged tokens. developers.circle.com/circle-mint/supported-chains-and-currencies

Cross-chain transfers:

• CCTP documentation (V2): protocol overview, domains, transfer lifecycle, fees endpoints and integration guides. developers.circle.com/cctp

Legal & policy (issuer publications):

• USDC Terms (non-EEA): scope, redemption with Circle for eligible users, blocked-address policy references. circle.com/legal/usdc-terms
• MiCA USDC White Paper (EEA): issuer, redemption right at par, disclosures under EU MiCA. circle.com/legal/mica-usdc-whitepaper
• MiCA Redemption Policy (EEA): processes/conditions for redemption with Circle Europe SAS. circle.com/legal/mica-redemption-policy
• USDC Risk Factors: risks, blocked-address language and other disclosures. circle.com/legal/usdc-risk-factors
• Bridged USDC Terms: issuer terms governing the Bridged USDC Standard service (where applicable). circle.com/legal/bridged-usdc-terms

Fees, limits & timings (issuer materials):

• Circle Mint fee schedule: issuer/network fee policies for account activity. help.circle.com/s/article/Circle-Account-fee-schedule
• USDC redemption structure: tiers, thresholds and timing notes visible to account holders. help.circle.com/s/article/USDC-redemption-structure

Live service status:

• Circle Status: real-time and historical incidents/maintenance for Circle services (on/off-ramp, APIs, chain connectivity). status.circle.so

These sources are maintained by Circle and should be treated as the canonical references when verifying contracts, network support, redemption terms, fees and live service health.

USDC was introduced by Circle on 26 September 2018 in collaboration with the then CENTRE consortium; the launch post describes USDC as a tokenised U.S. dollar that could be issued and redeemed against bank deposits, initially on Ethereum (ERC-20).

USDC’s early governance and standards were organised through CENTRE, a joint venture co-founded by Circle and Coinbase to define issuer requirements and oversee interoperability for fiat-denominated stablecoins. Coinbase’s launch notice (October 2018) likewise states that Coinbase and Circle were co-founders of CENTRE and that USDC was fully collateralised and ERC-20-based at launch.

On 21 August 2023, Circle and Coinbase announced that CENTRE would cease to operate as a separate governance body. Under the new structure, Circle remains the issuer of USDC and brought CENTRE’s prior governance and operations responsibilities in-house (including holding the smart-contract keys); Coinbase also took a minority equity stake in Circle.