Circle says Arc is on track for a Sept. 16 public mainnet launch that would open its production blockchain to users and applications while keeping block production within a permissioned validator set.
In a separate post on X, Circle reported more than half a billion testnet transactions, nearly 3 million wallets and more than 100 partners active on private mainnet. It said an initial validator cohort is expected to help operate the network alongside Circle.
Arc’s deployment documentation describes public mainnet as open to all users and applications. Developers can deploy contracts and send transactions without approval, but validation remains restricted to known institutions. Transaction fees are denominated in USDC, and Arc is compatible with Ethereum’s application environment.
Circle’s launch announcement says Arc was launched by Arc Network Services LLC and is operated by a permissioned validator set.
The publicly named group consists of Circle plus 11 founding validators: BlackRock, The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation, Galaxy, Global Payments, ICE, Mastercard, MoneyGram, SBI Group, Standard Chartered, Sumitomo Corporation and Visa.
