26-year-old Buffett Had $174,000 He was ready to retire. But actually, he wasn’t planning to stop working— He was planning to start a business. He founded Buffett Partnership Ltd. The first round raised $100,000, And this money came from: His father-in-law: $25,000 His aunt: $35,000 His sister: $10,000 His good friend: $5,000 Another friend’s mom: $25,000 His roommate: $5,000 Buffett himself: $100 Even as the son of a congressman, With years of solid credibility, His leverage ratio was only 0.5%. Buffett openly said He gained leverage by managing the company. So you see, Even for Buffett, The money he could “borrow” didn’t exceed his own net worth. Meanwhile, crcl, a company with a $20 billion market cap, Has less than $2 billion in net assets, But managed to “borrow” $74 billion to buy U.S. Treasury bonds, Achieving a leverage ratio of over 30x. Berkshire’s first $100,000 Came from Buffett’s family, friends, and reputation. But USDC’s capital reserves Are backed by systems, laws, and regulations. Looking at crcl’s leverage model in the long run, It could follow Buffett’s model—on a much larger and longer-lasting scale.