The first stablecoin stock Circle IPO closed up more than 168% on the first day, bringing hope to more startups waiting to go public

As one of the world's largest issuers of USDC, a stablecoin pegged to the US dollar, Circle's stock price closed at $83.23 per share on its first day of listing, 168% higher than the $31 IPO price set the day before.

The hot performance of this IPO shows that public market investors are interested in cryptocurrencies, especially stablecoins, against the backdrop of the Trump administration's support for crypto assets.

The sharp rise in Circle's first day of trading may prompt institutional investors to set higher IPO prices for upcoming listed companies. Upcoming IPOs include Omada Health, which set its offering price on Thursday, and Klarna, a fintech company that plans to go public next week.

According to PitchBook data, the company's IPO price corresponds to an initial market value of $6.1 billion, which is lower than Circle's last private round valuation of $7.7 billion when it raised $400 million in Series F financing in 2021.

But the sharp rise in stock prices reversed this situation and brought even more positive news. At the close, Circle's market value (excluding employee options) reached $16.7 billion, and the offering raised about $1.1 billion.

Circle joins a growing number of companies that have IPOed below private market highs, including recent "cut-round" companies such as health technology company Hinge, contractor platform ServiceTitan and social network Reddit. However, this seems unlikely to stop startups that are looking for signals that "now is the right time to go public."

Circle's successful listing comes three years after its last attempt at an IPO. The stablecoin issuer had planned to merge with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) at a valuation of $9 billion in 2022.