Its significance lies in allowing stablecoins, which were originally recognized only by a certain group of people, to truly step into the "mainstream" and gain the favor of some Old Money.

Last Thursday evening, Circle, the issuer of the world's second-largest stablecoin USDC (approximately 25% market share), officially listed on the New York Stock Exchange, with an issuance price of $31 per share. During the trading day, Circle triggered multiple circuit breakers, closing on its first day with a 168.48% increase, at a price of $83.23. By the end of the day, its market capitalization exceeded $18.5 billion, and it continued to rise nearly 30% the next day.

Currently, the total market capitalization of stablecoins worldwide has surpassed $250 billion, with USDT and USDC together accounting for 86% of the market share. This is also why Circle repeatedly adjusted its opening price before the IPO, as the market was much hotter than expected.

Moreover, Circle's listing on the New York Stock Exchange has kept the concept of "stablecoins" in the financial headlines for several days, and to some extent, it has allowed more traditional financial professionals to recognize the value of stablecoins.

Additionally, almost on the same day, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region officially announced that August 1, 2025, would be the implementation date for the "Stablecoin Regulation," further boosting the popularity of stablecoins in the financial market. Similarly, the GENIUS stablecoin bill in the U.S. is also on the way, and it seems that everything is just right.

Here, we will not delve too much into the value of stablecoins. After experiencing explosive growth in recent years, if one still denies their significance, it would be akin to saying "BTC is useless" and would require a reevaluation and adjustment of understanding.

Rewinding to about four years ago, around the same time, during the last bull market cycle, the largest U.S. crypto exchange, Coinbase, successfully landed on NASDAQ. On its first day of trading, the stock price surged to $429, with a market capitalization exceeding $112 billion, bringing hundreds of times returns to many early investors.

However, it was followed by more than two years of adjustment, and the performance in the months after the listing was criticized, even being labeled as a "garbage company." But it was precisely because of Coinbase's successful listing that the traditional financial market saw the rise of another emerging financial market, which eventually led to the current BTC ETF and various reserve assets.

Similarly, for Circle's listing, its significance lies in allowing stablecoins, which were originally recognized only by a certain group of people, to truly step into the "mainstream" and gain the favor of some Old Money. After all, if it remains within the vision of only a small group of people, it is difficult to enter the mainstream world, especially by showcasing financial capability and company transparency through listing, which is crucial for the development of stablecoins.

As Circle co-founder Jeremy Allaire stated in an interview with Bloomberg: "The IPO will bring more trust, compliance, and transparency to Circle's regulated stablecoin network and help establish partnerships with other financial institutions."

In 2008, Satoshi Nakamoto proposed the concept of "trustless currency" and created BTC, with the ideal of using a new form of currency like BTC to combat the excessive issuance of currency by financial institutions. However, today, due to various restrictions, BTC can no longer effectively serve as a means of payment, which is why stablecoins have been able to develop rapidly.

In a sense, stablecoins have replaced part of Satoshi Nakamoto's ideals, albeit only "in form." After all, stablecoins have returned to institutional logic, merely borrowing its technological form. However, based on this point, we cannot deny their value.

a16z Crypto pointed out in its latest report that in the past 12 months, the trading volume of stablecoins has reached $33 trillion, continuously setting historical highs, nearly 20 times the trading volume of PayPal and nearly 3 times that of Visa.

Some may feel that the current market size of stablecoins is already considerable, but compared to the traditional payment market size of trillions of dollars, it still seems a bit "immature." However, if we say that in the next 3-5 years, stablecoins are expected to become a single market worth trillions, perhaps we have only just passed the initial stage.

Thus, Circle's listing feels more like a small celebration for the "rebranding" of stablecoins, with the real drama just beginning after the celebration. As the most mature application in the crypto industry aside from trading, stablecoins may be the true stepping stone for Web3/Crypto applications to enter households, rather than the once-hyped NFTs.

For investors and entrepreneurs, this period also holds numerous opportunities. After all, making money work for you is always a good business. But if one cannot be a creator of money, at least they can serve in this field; everything is just beginning, with risks and opportunities coexisting.

So, what will Circle's market capitalization be in four years?

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