TL;DR
- Share sale acceleration: Circle will sell 10 million shares, 2 million primary and 8 million secondary, for about $1.4 billion, with IPO lead JPMorgan waiving lockups.
- Market and precedent context: The sale of lands as Bullish jumped 84% on debut, highlighting demand for crypto equities and follow-on appetite.
- Performance and sentiment: Shares are up 349% since listing, and Circle posted solid quarterly numbers, fueling confidence despite expected discounting.
Circle Internet Group moved to monetize a post IPO run, unveiling a 10 million share offering, with 2 million new shares and 8 million from CEO Jeremy Allaire and other holders, after reporting a strong quarter. At current prices, the sale could raise about $1.4 billion, arriving a day before exchange operator Bullish surged 84% in its debut, underscoring the appetite for crypto equities.
Offering details
Circle said the two-day deal was oversubscribed and on track to price Thursday, with JPMorgan, IPO lead bank, waiving lockup constraints that would limit insider sales until year-end. Despite shares being priced at under half of the June 23 high of $298.99, an increase of almost $1.4 billion would surpass the IPO earnings.
Why now
Analysts framed the decision as risk transfer after a strong start. “It is an opportunistic move that makes sense, and that is how risk gets transferred into the public market,” said Josef Schuster of IPOX Schuster. David Erickson of Columbia Business School called it a cash-in exercise and said that with the stock up 400% since IPO, sellers should find demand, though the deal will likely price at a discount to pre-filing levels.
Context from recent cycles
Follow-on sales inside 60 or 90 days were common during the 1999 to 2000 dot com boom, Erickson noted, and he is surprised more recent winners have not used the same playbook. This year, Karman Holdings sold 21 million shares for over twice its IPO price, roughly six months after going public. Viking Holdings, UL Solutions, and StandardAero also cleared early deals before lockups expired.
Performance and outlook
Circle shares have climbed 349% since listing, and the company reported solid quarterly numbers earlier this week. A person familiar with the deal said the book was covered, and the company declined to comment. “After such an enthusiastic IPO debut and two months of steady, high volume trading at elevated levels, the market has had time to price the company rationally,” said Jeff Zell of IPO Boutique.
