Circle’s EURC euro stablecoin tops €400 million after doubling in a year

Circle’s euro-backed stablecoin EURC has moved beyond €400 million in circulation, marking a major expansion for the euro-denominated digital asset as demand for regulated onchain money gathers pace across Europe and global financial markets.

Circle said in an Aug. 17 update that EURC’s supply had increased by more than 100% over the previous year. Circle’s EURC data showed approximately €402.4 million in circulation as of Aug. 13, underscoring the scale of the token’s growth.

The milestone comes as EURC gains broader distribution across blockchain networks, cryptocurrency exchanges, payment infrastructure and institutional platforms. Circle says the token is being used for trading, payments, foreign exchange, treasury management and institutional settlement.

The growth also highlights a broader shift in Europe’s digital-asset market. For years, euro-denominated stablecoins operated in the shadow of much larger dollar-based tokens, forcing European users and institutions to rely on dollar stablecoins as an intermediary when moving between euros and crypto markets.

That dynamic is beginning to change.

EURC’s supply has more than doubled from 2024 levels

EURC was launched on Ethereum in June 2022 before Circle expanded the token to additional blockchain networks. Its availability now includes major ecosystems such as Ethereum, Avalanche, Solana, Base and Stellar, while Circle has continued adding network support.

Circle’s latest figures represent a substantial increase from the roughly €80 million in circulation at the end of 2024 cited in the company’s growth history.

The expansion has occurred alongside deeper exchange distribution. EURC is available through platforms including Coinbase, Bitstamp, Bybit and Kraken, creating direct euro-denominated trading routes and reducing the need for users to move through dollar-pegged assets.

Institutional infrastructure has also become increasingly important. Custody and settlement providers have integrated Circle’s stablecoins, while payment companies have explored EURC as part of broader blockchain-based settlement systems.

Mastercard and Circle, for example, expanded their partnership in August 2025 to enable USDC and EURC settlement for acquirers in Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Mastercard said the initiative would allow participating acquirers to use Circle’s stablecoins within its payments network.

The significance is larger than another exchange listing. More payment and financial infrastructure means EURC can potentially function as transaction infrastructure rather than simply a crypto trading asset.

MiCA gives Circle a regulatory advantage

Regulation is another major factor behind the growth of Circle’s euro-backed stablecoin.

Circle became the first major global stablecoin issuer to announce compliance with the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation in July 2024. Its French entity obtained an Electronic Money Institution licence from France’s financial regulator, the Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel et de Résolution, allowing Circle to issue EURC and USDC as regulated electronic money tokens in the European market.

Under Circle’s model, EURC is backed by equivalent euro-denominated assets held in segregated accounts for token holders. Circle says the reserves are subject to monthly independent attestations, while eligible Circle Mint customers can redeem EURC for euros on a one-to-one basis.

Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire has framed regulatory compliance as a central part of the company’s European strategy.

“MiCA … is a huge milestone in bringing digital currency into mainstream scale and acceptance,” Allaire said when Circle announced its MiCA compliance in 2024.

The regulatory framework could become increasingly important as banks and traditional financial institutions begin experimenting with tokenized assets and blockchain-based settlement.

In September 2025, Deutsche Börse Group and Circle announced a collaboration to bring EURC and USDC into parts of Deutsche Börse’s financial-market infrastructure. The initiative included planned support for stablecoin trading through 360T’s digital exchange 3DX and institutional custody through Clearstream.

Europe’s euro stablecoin race is heating up

EURC’s rise is occurring against a rapidly changing competitive landscape.

Circle says total euro stablecoin circulation has climbed sharply over the past year, reaching roughly €650 million by June 2026. With EURC already above €400 million in August, Circle’s token represents a substantial portion of the market.

But Circle is no longer competing only with crypto-native issuers.

European banks are preparing their own alternatives. Qivalis, a consortium backed by 37 financial institutions across 15 European countries, is working toward launching a regulated euro-denominated stablecoin. The consortium expanded significantly in May after adding 25 banks, including ABN AMRO, Rabobank, Nordea and Intesa Sanpaolo.

Qivalis CEO Jan-Oliver Sell has argued that Europe needs greater euro liquidity on blockchain networks to prevent digital financial infrastructure from becoming overly dependent on dollar-denominated tokens.

The competition could ultimately benefit the wider European stablecoin market by pushing issuers to improve liquidity, distribution and institutional utility.

For Circle, however, the addressable market remains enormous. The company has pointed to euro-area M2 money supply exceeding €16 trillion, compared with only hundreds of millions of euros held in stablecoins.

That gap illustrates both the opportunity and the challenge.

The next phase of EURC’s growth will depend less on simply increasing token supply and more on whether institutions adopt it for real-world settlement, treasury operations, cross-border payments and tokenized financial markets.

Circle pushes for broader institutional settlement

Circle is also lobbying European policymakers to remove regulatory barriers that could slow stablecoin adoption.

In March 2026, the company submitted feedback on the European Commission’s proposed Market Integration Package, arguing that limiting securities settlement to “significant” electronic money tokens could prevent smaller euro-denominated tokens from developing the liquidity needed to become significant in the first place. Circle urged policymakers to permit all MiCA-compliant electronic money tokens to participate in eligible cash-leg settlement.

That debate could prove critical for EURC.

The euro-backed stablecoin has already crossed the €400 million threshold, but Europe’s much larger financial system provides a vastly bigger potential market. Circle’s challenge now is converting growing circulation into sustained institutional usage.

If exchanges, payment networks, banks and market infrastructures continue integrating EURC, the token could move beyond its role in crypto trading and become part of Europe’s emerging digital settlement architecture.

For now, the €400 million milestone offers a clear signal: the market for euro-denominated stablecoins is expanding, and Circle has established an early lead.