Circle Defends USDC Economic Model Amid Rising Stablecoin Yield Competition

Key Facts

1Circle is defending the economic model of USDC as competitors lure partners with larger shares of reserve interest income.

2Coinbase, Circle's primary USDC partner, is also supporting the rival Open USD network which passes reserve income to partners.

Circle is defending the economic model of its USDC stablecoin as competitors lure partners with larger shares of reserve interest income. CoinDesk reported that Coinbase, Circle's primary USDC partner, is also supporting the rival Open USD network which passes reserve income directly to its partners.

Rising interest rates have made stablecoin reserve yields highly profitable, leading rival projects to use yield-sharing as a primary tool to capture USDC's market share. In equity markets, COIN closed at $173.16 on October 16, 2026, having traded between a low of $168.86 and a high of $183.4 during that session.