Binance takes $100M stake in Circle under expanded USDC deal

Binance bought $100 million of Circle stock as part of a broadened five-year partnership to promote the USDC stablecoin on Binance's exchange. The private placement, disclosed in an SEC filing, gave Binance 1,237,011 Class A shares at $80.84 apiece and includes new commercial terms tying payments to USDC holdings in Circle's wallet infrastructure.

By AI Newsroom· Reviewed by Pranav, Founder & Editor-in-ChiefPublished about 1 hour agoUpdated about 1 hour ago0 views

Binance takes $100M stake in Circle under expanded USDC deal

Why It Matters

The deal deepens commercial ties between a leading exchange and a major stablecoin issuer, linking ongoing incentives and promotional activity to USDC adoption while giving Binance a locked-up equity stake in Circle. Those arrangements could influence how USDC is integrated and promoted across Binance's platform over the coming years.

Key Facts

Investment amount: $100 million
Shares issued to Binance: 1,237,011 Class A common shares
Price per share: $80.84
Filing date: Sept. 17 (private placement), disclosed in SEC filing on Tuesday
Circle ticker: CRCL (NYSE)

Binance has taken a $100 million equity stake in Circle and expanded a commercial partnership centered on the USDC stablecoin, according to a recent SEC filing. Circle said it issued 1,237,011 shares of its Class A common stock to Binance in a private placement at $80.84 per share on Sept. 17; the company said the purchase price represented a discount to Circle’s market price immediately before the transaction closed.

Under the new five-year agreement, Circle will pay Binance a monthly incentive fee tied to the amount of USDC held via Circle’s Modular Smart Contract Wallet infrastructure. Binance has also committed to additional promotional activities on its platform to support USDC. The arrangement replaces earlier agreements the firms signed in November 2024 and August 2025.

Binance agreed not to sell, transfer, assign, pledge or hypothecate the acquired Circle shares for up to two years, though that lockup can end sooner if Binance terminates the commercial agreement under certain conditions. During the lockup period, Binance retains voting rights over the shares. Either party can terminate the five-year commercial agreement early under specified circumstances.

Circle’s NYSE-listed shares (CRCL) were reported up more than 1.3% in premarket trading on Tuesday after closing Monday at $94.29, according to Yahoo Finance data cited in the filing. The disclosure was reported by Cointelegraph, which notes the story aims to provide accurate and timely information in line with its editorial policy.