Circle's stock price surge attracts investor attention as major shareholders' holdings come to light

Since the stablecoin issuer Circle successfully went public, its stock price has continued to rise, attracting the attention of global investors. The company has even become the fourth largest overseas stock purchased in South Korea this year to date. With the surge in stock price, Circle's investors and key shareholders have reaped substantial rewards, and their Holdings have also become a market focal point.

This article outlines the share reduction situations and holdings scale of 11 major Circle shareholders before and after the IPO. From the perspective of shareholding ratio, IDG Capital, which is deeply rooted in China, has become one of the known largest non-founder shareholders of Circle due to multiple rounds of early investment. Early investors such as Accel, General Catalyst, Breyer Capital, and Oak locked in profits through share reductions before the IPO, but missed out on significant profits due to exiting early, with losses reaching up to hundreds of millions of dollars. However, most investors still maintain a considerable Holdings and will continue to benefit from the rise in stock prices. Meanwhile, later participants like ARK Invest chose to boldly bet on Circle in the early stages of its IPO, subsequently cashing out at high prices to obtain substantial returns.

IDG Capital: Cashing out over $68 million before listing, still one of the largest external shareholders.

IDG Capital is one of the earliest venture capital institutions in China that engaged in early-stage investments, having invested in several well-known technology companies. As an important early investor in Circle, IDG participated in the early Series A, B, and C financing rounds, holding a significant amount of the company's equity.

The prospectus shows that IDG holds shares through its affiliated entities Chuang Xi Capital Limited and Wide Palace Limited, totaling 23,275,040 shares, accounting for 12.8%.

Chuang Xi Capital reduced its holdings by approximately 2.328 million shares at a price of $29.3 on June 6, cashing out about $68.29 million. Based on the current market price of $213.6, it missed out on nearly $430 million in potential profits. After the reduction, IDG-associated capital still holds about 20.947 million shares of Circle, with a shareholding ratio of 10.4%. Based on the current stock price, the remaining holdings are valued at over $4.473 billion, making it one of the company's largest external institutional investors.

It is worth mentioning that a certain holding company established an industrial fund in 2016 in collaboration with IDG Capital, which invested in Circle as part of its initial investment project of 10 billion yuan; this equity investment may be included in the aforementioned investment by the IDG affiliate.

General Catalyst: Holdings reached 10%, CRCL position is nearly 4.3 billion USD.

General Catalyst is an investor in Circle's Series A and C rounds. According to documents disclosed by the SEC in the United States, General Catalyst is an important shareholder of Circle, with a shareholding ratio that once exceeded 10%. As a continuous investor from Series A to E, General Catalyst sold approximately 3.55 million shares at a price of $29.3 on June 6, cashing out about $104 million. Based on a stock price of $213.6, it missed out on approximately $650 million in paper profit. After the reduction, the institution still holds about 20.12 million shares of CRCL, worth over $4.29 billion.

ARK Invest: Reduced holdings and cashed out over $350 million, CRCL remains one of the core Holdings.

As of June 27, ARK Invest holds approximately $580 million worth of CRCL, with a total of about 2.818 million shares. Among them, its three main ETFs all hold CRCL shares.

On the day of Circle's listing, ARK Invest purchased approximately 4.486 million shares of CRCL for the first time, with the holdings valued at around $373 million at that time. However, starting from June 16, the institution began to significantly reduce its holdings of CRCL stocks, cumulatively selling about 1,667,000 shares, cashing out approximately $352 million. Despite the large-scale reduction, Circle remains one of the important holdings in ARK Invest's three main ETFs.

CEO Jeremy Allaire: Large-scale equity conversion before going public, cashing out over 46 million USD

Jeremy Allaire is the Chairman and CEO of Circle. He conducted a large-scale stock conversion and trading operation before the company's IPO, with a post-IPO stock ratio of 23.7%. On June 6, Allaire converted all of his 18.59 million shares of Class A common stock into Class B common stock at a 1:1 ratio. This type of stock enjoys the same economic benefits as Class A common stock but has stronger control in voting rights. Additionally, Allaire converted over 330,000 shares of Class A common stock into Class B shares through a trust he established, while continuing to hold them indirectly. On June 6, Allaire also sold over 15,800 shares of Class B common stock after automatic conversion at an average price of $29.3 per share, totaling approximately $46.4 million in cash out. Furthermore, Allaire converted over 18 million Class A stock options into Class B options, with an exercise period extending to 2033.

Despite Jeremy Allaire's recent sale of a portion of his shares and restructuring of equity, his control over Circle remains substantially unaffected due to the high voting rights of Class B shares, a large options pool, and the family's trust holding structure.

Accel: Holdings value exceeds 230 million USD, shareholding ratio reaches 5.3%

Accel is one of the important shareholders participating in multiple rounds of financing for Circle, and its partner is also an investment partner at a certain investment institution in the United States. According to publicly disclosed information, Accel originally held 12.816 million shares of CRCL, with a shareholding ratio of 6.9%. During Circle's current listing process, Accel reduced its shareholdings to 10.925 million shares, with a shareholding ratio of 5.3%. Based on the most recent closing price, this is valued at over $230 million.

Breyer Capital: Reduced holdings by 335,000 shares, remaining Holdings value still exceeds $280 million

Breyer Capital participated in Circle's Series A to Series D financing. Although Breyer Capital chose to reduce its holdings by over 335,000 shares during Circle's IPO, the specific reduction price has not been disclosed. However, based on the current market price of $213.6, the market value of this portion of shares has reached $71.6 million. Currently, Breyer Capital still holds 1.336 million shares, with a holding ratio of 6.5%, and the value of its holdings exceeds $285 million.

Oak Investment Partners: After reducing their holdings, they still hold 5.9%, with a position of $250 million.

A certain investment institution began supporting Circle as early as 2014, participating in its Series B and C funding rounds. According to public data, before Circle went public, the institution reduced its holdings by approximately 209,000 shares of CRCL, which is valued at about $44 million at the current market price. Currently, the institution holds over 1.188 million shares, with a shareholding ratio of 5.9%, and the value of its holdings is approximately $250 million.

It is worth mentioning that the trading head of the institution at that time faced charges a year later for insider trading related to other mergers and embezzlement of company funds, which directly led to the institution's decision to stop raising new funds.

FMR: Keep the shares unchanged, Holdings value exceeds $280 million

FMR is the parent company of an investment firm that participated in Circle's $50 million Series C funding round. It did not reduce its holdings during Circle's IPO process, maintaining a total of 1.341 million shares, with a voting rights ratio of 4.6%. The current value of its Holdings exceeds $280 million.

CFO Jeremy Fox-Geen: Cashed out over $5.8 million, with options Holdings exceeding 1.2 million.

Jeremy Fox-Geen is the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Circle. On June 5, he reduced his direct Holdings by approximately 44,600 shares of common stock through a non-trade transfer, and subsequently increased his holdings by 160,000 shares of common stock and corresponding stock options at a price of $10.11; on June 6, he sold another 200,000 shares at a sale price of approximately $29.3, with a total cash amount of approximately $5.854 million. Based on the current market price of $213.6, the potential book profit from this portion of sold shares exceeds $37 million.

Currently, Jeremy Fox-Geen directly holds approximately 320,000 shares of CRCL common stock, and has about 1.27 million stock options with an exercise price of $10.11, valid for up to 6 years.

Date Rajeev V.: Profit of approximately $1.46 million, indirect Holdings valued at nearly $200 million

Date Rajeev V. is the managing partner of an investment and consulting firm. According to documents disclosed by the U.S. SEC, on June 6, 2025, he increased his indirect holdings of approximately 600,000 shares of CRCL common stock through a non-trading transfer, while personally selling 50,000 shares of common stock at a selling price of approximately $29.3, cashing out about $1.465 million. If calculated at the current market price of $213.6, the potential paper gain from this portion of the sold shares exceeds $9.5 million.

Currently, Rajeev V indirectly holds approximately 900,000 shares of CRCL common stock through affiliated entities and other trust institutions. Based on the current CRCL stock price, this is estimated to be worth about $192 million.

CPO Nikhil Chandhok: Cashed out over 22 million dollars, Holdings still exceed 600,000 shares

Nikhil Chandhok is the Chief Product Officer (CPO) of Circle. According to documents disclosed by the U.S. SEC, he reduced his holdings by approximately 758,000 shares of CRCL common stock from June 5 to June 6, with a reduction price range between $29.3 and $31, cashing out approximately $22.7 million. If calculated at the current market price of $213.6, the potential book profit from this portion of the reduced shares exceeds $160 million.

Currently, Nikhil Chandhok still holds approximately 606,000 shares of CRCL common stock, which is estimated to be worth about $130 million at the current share price.