Circle sold a little more, paid far less in stock compensation, and crossed from loss to profit.

Revenue rose 6.6% to $701.3 million in the three months ended June 30, 2026, from $658.1 million a year earlier. Operating income moved from a $325.6 million loss to $34.4 million of profit, while net income went from a $482.1 million loss to $48.2 million.

The sharp turn came less from explosive sales than from a dramatically different expense base. Stock compensation fell to $53.6 million from $435.0 million, a reduction larger than the entire $360.0 million swing in operating income. Circle’s diluted share count, meanwhile, rose 149.9% to 268.6 million, so the profit improvement does not translate cleanly into a per-share comparison.

Circle attributes the compensation change to last year’s IPO-related RSU vesting. The company said the shares had already met their service condition before the IPO, with the liquidity-event condition met when trading began on the New York Stock Exchange.

"Compensation expenses decreased by $369.4 million, or 73.4%, for the three months ended June 30, 2026, compared to the three months ended June 30, 2025, driven by $423.8 million of stock-based compensation expense recognized during the three months ended June 30, 2025 related to the vesting of RSUs, for which the service-based condition had been met prior to the IPO, and the liquidity-event related performance condition was met upon the completion of the IPO and upon the commencement of trading of our Class A common stock on the NYSE during the three months ended June 30, 2025."

Circle, Form 10-Q, Aug. 5, 2026

In plain English, last year carried a one-time IPO vesting charge that this year largely did not. That makes the margin change real in the reported numbers, but unusually dependent on the comparison base: operating margin improved from negative 49.5% to 4.9%.

The operating business did grow. Reserve income increased $33.5 million, and Circle said roughly $147.4 million of the increase reflected a 25.2% rise in average daily USDC in circulation, alongside expanded partnerships and integrations.

"Reserve income increased by $33.5 million, or 5.3%, for the three months ended June 30, 2026, compared to the three months ended June 30, 2025, of which approximately $147.4 million of the increase is attributable to a 25.2% increase in average daily USDC in circulation reflecting increased demand for Circle stablecoins, as well as expanded strategic partnerships and integrations."

Circle, Form 10-Q, Aug. 5, 2026

That is the other half of the filing: USDC usage is expanding, but the revenue line is growing much more slowly than last year’s expense reversal improved profit. The company’s annual revenue had already jumped 624.0% in 2025, so the latest 6.6% increase sits against a business that is growing from a much larger base.

The balance sheet adds a separate question. Cash increased 54.7% to $1.7 billion, while accounts receivable rose 697.8% to $105.4 million. Circle does not disclose the reason for the receivables increase in the supplied discussion. At a $10.1 billion market capitalization and 77.6 times enterprise value to sales, that distinction matters because the reported profit improvement and the underlying pace of sales growth are doing different jobs.

Circle’s Coinbase relationship puts a specific shape around the partnership reference. Its 10-Q says Coinbase receives allocations based on USDC held on its platform and broader ecosystem growth, making the expansion of distribution relevant not only as a volume figure but also as an arrangement with disclosed sharing economics.

"Under the Collaboration Agreement, Coinbase receives allocations based on the amount of USDC held on its platform after our issuer retention, and Coinbase also receives half of the remaining amount tied to broader ecosystem growth after amounts paid to any approved third-party ecosystem participants pursuant to our Stablecoin Ecosystem Agreement."

Circle, Form 10-Q, Aug. 5, 2026

The cleanest unresolved comparison in Circle’s next three-month report is whether accounts receivable remains near the reported $105.4 million as revenue moves beyond $701.3 million.