Circle Mint launches BTC-backed borrowing on Arc and Ethereum
USDC (USDC)
Editor:
Eugene Serbin
cryptobriefing.com reports that Circle has activated its Digital Asset-Backed Borrowing feature on Circle Mint, allowing institutions to borrow USDC against Bitcoin without selling their holdings. Launched on September 2, 2026, the service wraps deposited BTC into cirBTC, which is backed 1:1 by BTC held in custody at Circle National Trust. This wrapped token serves as collateral within Morpho lending vaults on both Ethereum and Circle’s Arc chain.
The workflow requires institutions to deposit BTC, receive cirBTC, and secure USDC loans that settle directly into their Circle Mint accounts. Chainlink’s proof-of-reserves verification confirms the collateral backing to lenders, while interest rates and ratios float based on Morpho’s market parameters. Circle selected Morpho for its curated risk architecture, which suits institutional compliance better than open pools, with Aave planned as a future integration.
The service excludes clients based in New York but has already attracted over $150 million in deposits on Arc’s launch day. This mechanism lets large holders fund operations or capital calls without triggering taxable sales or abandoning BTC upside.
How the market reacted
Whalio's own Binance spot order flow for USDC, measured when this story was written up on 21 September 2026. Not the outlet's figures.
USDC is trading at $1.00 with a 1-hour buy ratio of 52.4%, indicating a short-term shift toward buying pressure compared to the 49.2% reading over the past four hours. This uptick suggests that immediate buying momentum is building, contrasting with the slightly lower 24-hour buy ratio of 48.9%. Volume delta data shows a net inflow of $6,687,070 in the last hour, signaling active accumulation, though the four-hour delta remains negative at -$13,674,347. The cumulative volume delta for the 24-hour period stands at +$123,146,709, confirming that net buying has outweighed selling over the full day. These figures reflect a market where short-term buyers are currently outpacing sellers, despite a broader negative volume delta over the four-hour window.
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 49.0%, making today’s 24-hour ratio of 48.9% virtually identical, a difference of just 0.1 percentage points. This stability in buying sentiment contrasts with the volume activity, which sat at 0.65x the weekly average, indicating significantly lower trading volume than usual. While the daily volume delta was negative, the weekly total volume delta reached -$506,814,962, showing that selling pressure has been consistent over the eight-day period. Only two of the past seven days saw net buying, suggesting that today’s activity is part of a broader trend of subdued volume rather than an unusual spike. The price remained unchanged at 0.0% over the eight-day window, reinforcing that this is an ordinary day for price action despite the specific news event.