Circle Author: Hu Tao, ChainCatcher

Renowned investor Duan Yongping, known as the "Chinese Buffett," has recently submitted his family's wealth management institution H&H International Investment LLC's Q1 13F holdings report to the U.S. SEC, covering the period ending March 31, 2026.

According to the report, Duan Yongping's portfolio market value has significantly increased from $17.49 billion in the previous quarter to $20.004 billion. In addition to maintaining substantial positions in Apple (AAPL), Berkshire (BRK.B), and Nvidia (NVDA), a new name drew the attention of both the cryptocurrency industry and value investors: stablecoin giant (NYSE: CRCL).

Although the $19.08 million investment represents only 0.2% of Duan Yongping's vast portfolio, this signal is highly symbolic. For a seasoned value investor who typically invests in businesses that are "understandable, possess a moat, and have good cash flow," the logic reflected in the purchase of Circle deserves careful consideration.

From Rejection to Acceptance

It is well known that Duan Yongping is one of China's most successful entrepreneur-investors and one of the very few Chinese investors who have truly practiced and successfully implemented Buffett-style value investing for the long term.

However, for a long time, Duan Yongping's attitude towards blockchain and Web3 has been relatively cautious. Over the past few years, he has rarely publicly participated in the Web3 boom and has not frequently discussed concepts like NFTs, DeFi, or public chains, unlike some technology investors. Throughout the volatile cycles of Bitcoin's dramatic price fluctuations, Duan Yongping has shown no clear interest.

This is actually not surprising. Duan Yongping's core investment framework is essentially closer to Buffett's system: emphasizing long-term cash flow, understanding of the business model, brand and channel moats, and quality of management. He particularly favors companies with strong consumer mentality, high free cash flow, and long-term compounding ability, such as Apple, Kweichow Moutai, and Berkshire.

However, most past cryptocurrency projects have found it difficult to meet these standards.

Many Web3 projects highly rely on token price-driven models, have fragile business structures, and unsustainable cash flow; the industry also faces long-term regulatory uncertainties, chaotic governance, and periodic bubbles. These characteristics are almost in natural conflict with the "certainty" emphasized by traditional value investors.

But Circle is an exception. Compared to numerous cryptocurrency projects that rely heavily on "storytelling" or speculative behaviors to maintain valuation, Circle resembles a typical financial infrastructure company.

Why Circle?

The core business of Circle is not "trading coins," but issuing the stablecoin USDC and earning interest income through reserve assets such as U.S. Treasury bonds. Its profit model is actually closer to that of money market funds, payment clearing platforms, or even "digital dollar banks."

This also means that its revenue sources are highly predictable. Furthermore, Circle's latest Q1 2026 financial report reinforces this point.

The financial report shows that Circle's total revenue in Q1 reached $694 million, a year-on-year increase of 20%, with 94% coming from reserve earnings; adjusted EBITDA reached $151 million, a year-on-year increase of 24%.

More importantly, its core business metrics are still expanding rapidly: the circulation of USDC reached $77 billion, a year-on-year increase of 28%; the on-chain transaction volume of USDC reached $21.5 trillion, a staggering year-on-year increase of 263%.

This means Circle has formed a relatively complete "stablecoin interest machine." Under the high interest rate environment in the U.S., the interest income generated from USDC reserves has rapidly increased, making Circle one of the few large companies in the cryptocurrency industry that genuinely possesses stable cash flow and can achieve sustained profitability.

Circle Financing History Source: RootData

For an investor like Duan Yongping, who emphasizes "business essence," Circle has finally begun to present a form that is "understandable."

At the end of April, Circle also announced that its Layer 1 network Arc completed a token presale financing of $222 million, achieving a valuation of $3 billion. a16z led the round with $75 million, with participation from over a dozen institutions including BlackRock, Apollo Funds, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), Standard Chartered Ventures, ARK Invest, and Bullish.

The expansion of the public chain network and the issuance of native tokens further opened up the ceiling for Circle's business, causing its stock price to rise accordingly. Entering May, Circle's stock price rose nearly threefold from the year's low (50 dollars) to over 140 dollars, currently slightly retreating to 111 dollars.

Traditional Financial Systems are Becoming More Accepting of Crypto Assets

Now, more and more cryptocurrency companies are attempting IPOs. From trading platforms and stablecoin issuers to on-chain payment and custody infrastructures, many cryptocurrency enterprises are actively entering traditional capital markets, hoping to obtain more stable financing channels, broader institutional shareholders, and stronger regulatory legitimacy.

At the same time, traditional financial giants are stepping into the crypto realm at an unprecedented pace. Whether it’s BlackRock promoting a Bitcoin ETF, traditional banks exploring stablecoin settlements and on-chain asset custody, or payment firms integrating into the USDC network, it essentially indicates one thing:

The cryptocurrency industry is no longer just an independently existing "alternative market," but is beginning to undergo deep integration with the global financial system.

In this process, stablecoin companies represented by Circle are becoming the easiest bridge for traditional capital to understand and accept.

Duan Yongping's recent purchase of Circle signifies exactly this point. This does not necessarily mean he is fully bullish on Web3, nor that the value investing system has begun to embrace all crypto assets. But it at least indicates that stablecoins and on-chain dollar systems have started to enter the "capability circle" of some traditional top investors.

From a broader perspective, Circle is just one of the pioneers in the crypto industry "translated" through traditional mainstream capital. As regulatory frameworks gradually become clearer, the infrastructure matures, and profit models continue to be validated, there will be more crypto-native enterprises like Circle entering the sight of traditional capital markets in the future.

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