- Cathie Wood argues Circle is disrupting Visa and Mastercard as USDC transaction volumes and market share continue to expand.
- Circle reported $48 million in Q2 net income as USDC processed $849 billion in July transactions, gaining 62% market share.
- Visa and Mastercard face growing stablecoin competition after joining the Open USD consortium alongside Circle rival Coinbase.
Cathie Wood challenged Wall Street’s view of Circle, Visa and Mastercard on Aug. 23, arguing analysts underestimate stablecoin competition. The ARK Invest founder said CRCL had gained 84% since its June 2025 IPO. Meanwhile, Visa and Mastercard posted year-to-date gains of 5% and 1%, respectively, as Circle’s stock recovered 30% in July.
Circle’s Results Put Focus on USDC Growth
Wood said many financial services analysts built their records covering Visa and Mastercard. However, she argued that those analysts cannot understand Circle as a payments industry disruptor. According to Alex, a finance researcher and partner at Artemis and Oobit, the recent stock moves reflect changing views.
Circle reported $48 million in net income during the second quarter of 2026. The result reversed a loss recorded during the prior-year period. Additionally, Circle’s transaction revenue doubled during the same period.
USDC recorded approximately $849 billion in transaction volume during July and held 62% market share. During the first half of 2026, USDC processed a record $5.3 trillion in transactions. Meanwhile, CRCL traded about 58% below its peak despite July’s 30% rally.
CRCL debuted at $31 on June 5, 2025, and later reached nearly $299. The shares subsequently declined sharply from that level.
OUSD Consortium Adds New Competition
However, Circle’s market position now faces competition from the Open USD consortium and its OUSD stablecoin. The consortium launched around June 30, 2026, with Stripe, Coinbase and BlackRock among its partners.
Notably, Visa and Mastercard also joined the group. According to Alex, Mastercard paid $1.8 billion for BVNK Finance. BVNK had previously powered Visa’s stablecoin payouts.
The arrangement adds another connection between traditional payment networks and stablecoin infrastructure. Meanwhile, Coinbase’s participation places a historical Circle partner behind a competing stablecoin project.
Payments Stocks Show Different Market Moves
According to Alex, Circle’s July rally followed an earlier 42% decline over twelve months. He said CRCL’s recovery came alongside Circle’s profit turnaround and higher transaction revenue. Alex also cited $33 trillion in stablecoin transfers during the previous year.
That figure represented 72% growth, according to his analysis. Meanwhile, Visa and Mastercard continued their smaller year-to-date gains. Both companies also joined the OUSD consortium as competition expanded across stablecoin issuance and payment infrastructure.
