Circle acquired fundamental assets from IBM's blockchain patent portfolio in a deal the stablecoin issuer says makes it the largest blockchain patent holder in the United States.
The portfolio comprises more than 680 patent families and nearly 1,000 issued patents worldwide, spanning foundational blockchain technology, banking, financial services, insurance, enterprise infrastructure, supply chain verification, and secure cloud operations, according to Circle’s statement.
Circle (CRCL) said the expanded intellectual property position supports its work building an internet financial system, including the USDC stablecoin, the Circle Payments Network, its Arc blockchain, and a growing set of onchain products and agentic financial tools.
Circle and IBM plan to explore additional commercial opportunities, the company added.
The deal's financial terms were not disclosed.
