Popular crypto stock jumps after acquiring nearly 1,000 patents
Circle Internet Group (NYSE: CRCL) said on July 27 it had acquired IBM's blockchain patent portfolio, adding more than 680 patent families and nearly 1,000 issued patents worldwide to its intellectual property.
The company, which issues the USDC stablecoin, said the acquisition makes it the largest holder of blockchain patents among US companies.
Circle said the portfolio will support products including USDC, Circle Payments Network and its Arc blockchain infrastructure.
These patents span blockchain technology, banking, enterprise infrastructure, supply chain verification and secure cloud operations. Circle, however, did not disclose the financial terms of the deal.
"IBM has been a pioneer in technological innovation, and this acquisition expands Circle's ability to advance the infrastructure that powers global, internet-native finance" Circle general counsel Sarah Wilson said.
Circle shares rose after the announcement. CRCL traded at $65.57 at the time of writing, up 3.21% on the day.
The IBM patent purchase follows Circle's January 21, 2025 acquisition of Hashnote, the issuer of the USYC tokenized money market fund.
At the time, USYC held approximately $1.52 billion in assets and was described as the world's largest tokenized Treasury and money market fund.
The two acquisitions highlight Circle's push to become a broader digital financial infrastructure provider rather than solely a stablecoin issuer.
Its platform now spans stablecoins, tokenized funds, payments and its Arc layer-1 blockchain.
Circle's stock also remains well above its initial public offering price. The company priced 34 million shares at $31 on June 4, 2025, before beginning trading on the New York Stock Exchange on June 5.
Shares opened at $69 and finished their first trading session at $83.23, more than doubling the IPO price during Circle's blockbuster market debut.
CRCL was trading about 110% above its IPO price at publication.
This story was originally published by TheStreet on Jul 27, 2026, where it first appeared in the Trading News & Analysis section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.