Circle Launches Arc Mainnet for Stablecoin Applications
USDC (USDC)
Editor:
Eugene Serbin
cvj.ai reports that Circle has launched the public mainnet for Arc, a layer-1 blockchain designed specifically for stablecoin applications. The network utilizes USDC for gas fees and features deterministic settlement to ensure instant and irreversible transaction finality. Arc employs a permissioned proof-of-authority consensus model powered by the Malachite engine, with validators including BlackRock, Visa, and Mastercard.
The fee structure replaces block-level adjustments with a weighted moving average to keep costs predictable, and the network supports opt-in privacy for institutional users. Rachel Mayer, Circle’s VP of Product Management, stated that consistent feedback from enterprises highlighted the need for predictable costs and deterministic settlement. The native ARC token has an initial supply of 10 billion, with 60% allocated to the ecosystem and 25% to Circle.
Circle completed the genesis mint of all ARC tokens in September 2026, marking the first time a publicly traded company minted a network token for a new layer-1. The network also includes tooling for AI agents, with USDC accounting for 98.8% of their transaction volume. Ecosystem partners such as Aave, Morpho, and Uniswap are anchoring lending and trading activities on the chain. Circle’s second-quarter results showed doubled full-year revenue guidance, partly attributed to recognized revenue from the ARC token presale.
How the market reacted
Whalio's own Binance spot order flow for USDC, measured when this story was written up on 17 September 2026. Not the outlet's figures.
USDC is trading at $1.00 with a 24-hour buy ratio of 49.4%, indicating a near-even split between buyers and sellers. The 1-hour buy ratio sits at 44.9% and the 4-hour ratio at 47.4%, showing that short-term buying pressure is slightly weaker than the daily average. Volume delta is negative across all timeframes, with -$11.1 million in the last hour and -$37 million over four hours. This negative volume delta means that sell volume has exceeded buy volume during these periods, indicating net outflow from buyers. Despite this, the 24-hour spot volume remains high at $3.26 billion, with nearly 600,000 trades executed. The CVD for the 24-hour close is -$58.9 million, confirming that selling pressure has outweighed buying pressure over the full day.
The latest daily buy ratio of 50.2% sits at the 73rd percentile of the last 322 days, against a median of 48.4% - stronger buying than most days.
Was that an ordinary day?
The same Binance spot measurements for USDC, averaged over the days leading up to the story.
Over the preceding week, the average buy ratio was 49.5%, which is nearly identical to today’s 24-hour reading of 49.4%. This suggests that today’s trading activity is consistent with the weekly norm, showing no significant deviation in buyer sentiment. However, the 24-hour spot volume of $3.26 billion is 1.26 times the weekly average volume, indicating a notable spike in trading activity. While the buy ratio remains stable, the increased volume suggests heightened interest or turnover in USDC. The 8-day volume delta total of -$287.9 million reflects a sustained net selling pressure over the week, which aligns with today’s negative intraday deltas. This combination of average buy ratios and above-average volume points to an ordinary day for sentiment but an unusual day for volume.