Circle Launches Arc Mainnet with BlackRock, Visa, and Mastercard Among Validators

Circle has launched the public mainnet of the L1 blockchain Arc, which is already reflected on its official website. Among the project's validators are BlackRock, Visa, Mastercard, Galaxy, and other major companies. Circle conducted a genesis mint of 10 billion ARC, but a decision on the public launch of the token has not yet been made. Arc is focused on financial markets, payments, tokenized assets, and operations involving AI agents. The network is EVM-compatible, uses USDC for fee payments, and ensures transaction finalization in less than a second. The initial pool of validators also includes DTCC, Global Payments, Intercontinental Exchange, MoneyGram, SBI Group, Standard Chartered, and Sumitomo Corporation. DeFi protocols Aave, Morpho, and Uniswap are available in the ecosystem. Circle reported over 100 applications and more than 100 institutional participants. The genesis mint of 10 billion ARC is a technical milestone that does not signify the public launch of the asset. Circle is considering transitioning Arc from Proof-of-Authority to Proof-of-Stake in 2027. ARC is planned to be used for coordinating network participants, governance, and security, while USDC will remain the means of paying fees. Circle introduced Arc in August 2025 as an L1 blockchain for stablecoin and financial instrument operations.