Circle CEO Latest Interview: Stablecoins Are Not Crypto Assets

Video Title: David Rubenstein Show: Jeremy Allaire

Video Author: David Rubenstein, YouTube

Translation: Peggy, BlockBeats

Editor’s Note: In 2025, stablecoin issuer Circle completed its IPO, becoming one of the most watched public listings in the crypto industry in recent years. As the issuer of USDC, Circle is trying to transform stablecoins from a trading tool in the crypto market into an infrastructure for digital dollars that can circulate on the internet.

In the latest episode of “The David Rubenstein Show: Peer to Peer Conversations,” Circle co-founder, CEO, and Chairman Jeremy Allaire discusses with host David Rubenstein, reflecting on the company’s long journey from founding in 2013 to successful IPO, and sharing his views on the future role of stablecoins.

Long-termism: Why Circle is a “20-Year Company”

• David (Host): One of the most successful IPOs in 2025 is Circle’s listing. Circle is a regulated stablecoin network. The company was founded by Jeremy Allaire. Today, the company’s market value is about $20 billion, and you hold roughly 10%, right?

• Jeremy Allaire: Pretty much. I’ve been working on this company for 12 and a half years. It’s been a very long journey, and for a long time, hardly anyone believed we could reach today’s scale.

• Jeremy Allaire: But I want to say that from the perspective of the future we envisioned, Circle is still very much an early-stage company. The IPO is just a milestone. What excites me most is that, now that we are a public company, the public can participate in the company’s long-term development. The legal frameworks regulating stablecoins have only just been passed and are not fully implemented yet. So, from a longer-term perspective, we are still in very early stages.

Embedding the US Dollar into the Internet: The True Goal of Stablecoins

Initial Concept: Turning the US Dollar into an “Internet Protocol”

• David (Host): When did you found Circle? Who initially provided the startup funding?

• Jeremy Allaire: 2013. Early investors included General Catalyst, Jim Breyer (Breyer Capital), and Accel.

• Jeremy Allaire: Back then, the concept of “stablecoins” didn’t exist. But our idea was: the internet has protocols like Web, Email, Voice Communication that enable information to flow globally. Blockchain technology allows us to create a new protocol: “Internet Money Protocol.” In other words, in the future, the US dollar could flow natively on the internet just like information does.

Why Stablecoins Are Needed: The Revolution in Cross-Border Payments

• David (Host): If I want to send money to Istanbul, I can wire it through a bank. Why do we still need stablecoins?

• Jeremy Allaire: The reality is often slow, complicated, and costly. Turkey is a typical example, where USDC demand is very high. Many people don’t want to hold lira, but stablecoins let them hold digital dollars directly on their phones, make peer-to-peer transfers, with almost zero cost and instant settlement—just like making a phone call.

• Jeremy Allaire: Also, regulated stablecoin issuers do not lend out reserves; assets are safely held in U.S. Treasuries or cash.

Will Stablecoins Replace Banks?

• Jeremy Allaire: In the future, a new type of institution may emerge—a financial software platform built entirely on internet infrastructure. These platforms could become as important as banks, or even larger. Meanwhile, many banks will start adopting this technology and gradually integrate into this new system.

Next-Generation Financial Infrastructure: AI, Quantum Computing, and Internet Financial Platforms

From Internet Entrepreneur to Stablecoin Founder

• David (Host): Tell us about your background.

• Jeremy Allaire: Born in 1971 in Philadelphia. Graduated from college in 1993, and I was convinced that the internet would fundamentally change communication, media, and software. Later, I founded several companies, including Allaire and Brightcove, which both went public successfully. In 2012, I started to deeply explore cryptography, and in 2013, I founded Circle.

The AI Era: Will Jobs Be Replaced?

• Jeremy Allaire: AI is likely to profoundly change the labor market; many jobs will be replaced. But I tell my employees to learn how to use AI tools as soon as possible. The most valuable skill in the future will be human-AI collaboration, which will create new productivity.

Quantum Computing and Cryptography Risks

• Jeremy Allaire: All modern financial systems rely on cryptography. If quantum computing can break cryptography, the impact will be enormous. That’s why we are researching post-quantum cryptography. Our goal is to ensure that core infrastructure can resist quantum attacks by 2026 or 2027.

What Circle Wants the World to Understand

• Jeremy Allaire: I want to emphasize two points:

  1. Stablecoin technology is still very early; this is just the beginning.

  2. Circle’s goal is not just issuing stablecoins but building a comprehensive internet financial infrastructure (developer platforms, financial operating systems).

• Jeremy Allaire: Over the next decade, a number of internet financial platform companies are likely to emerge, becoming vital infrastructure for the global financial system, and Circle aims to be one of them.