BlackRock’s Daring Dance with Circle’s IPO: Will They or Won’t They? 🤔

by

What to know:

  • BlackRock is toying with the idea of snagging 10% of the shares in Circle’s IPO, as per the ever-reliable Bloomberg.
  • Circle, in a fit of excitement, filed its IPO paperwork on Tuesday, offering a whopping 24 million shares, split like a well-cut pie between the company and its stakeholders.
  • ARK Invest, led by the indomitable Cathie Wood, has expressed a keen interest in gobbling up $150 million worth of shares in this grand offering.

In a twist that could rival any of Bertie Wooster’s escapades, BlackRock Inc. is contemplating the acquisition of a neat 10% of the shares in Circle’s forthcoming initial public offering (IPO), as reported by Bloomberg on a Wednesday that felt particularly juicy.

The IPO filing, which made its grand entrance on Tuesday, reveals plans to offer 24 million Class A shares — 9.6 million from Circle and a staggering 14.4 million from existing stakeholders, who must be feeling rather pleased with themselves.

According to the filing, the ever-astute Cathie Wood’s ARK Investment Management has shown interest in purchasing up to $150 million worth of the IPO shares. The shares are expected to be priced between $24 and $26, and will be trading under the rather snazzy ticker ‘CRCL’.

Now, while BlackRock’s potential involvement is certainly the talk of the town, it remains as uncertain as a cat in a room full of rocking chairs. Bloomberg has reported that it’s still unclear whether BlackRock would invest directly or through some mysterious affiliated vehicle, and there’s always the chance they could decide to take a leisurely stroll away from the deal.

In a rather uncharacteristic move, BlackRock didn’t immediately respond to CoinDesk’s request for comment. Perhaps they were busy polishing their crystal ball?

The asset management behemoth already has a cozy relationship with Circle, managing the Circle Reserve Fund, a government money market fund that holds a staggering 90% of the reserves backing Circle’s USDC stablecoin. USDC, as you may know, is one of the largest dollar-pegged cryptocurrencies, gallivanting around the crypto trading and DeFi protocols like it owns the place.

If BlackRock decides to go through with this, it would mark yet another grand entrance for traditional finance into the digital asset space, further entrenching stablecoins like USDC in the broader financial system, much to the delight of those who enjoy a good financial drama.

The IPO would make Circle one of the few large crypto-native firms to go public in the U.S. after a long, drawn-out lull in public market debuts from the sector. Circle previously attempted to go public via a SPAC merger in 202, which, in a plot twist worthy of a Shakespearean tragedy, was subsequently scrapped.

Read More

2025-05-28 21:35