Circle revises merger agreement with Concord to double its valuation to $9B

Circle, the issuer of the USD Coin (USDC), has increased its market capitalization to $9 billion after revising its merger agreement with the Special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Concord Acquisition Corp, created in 2020.

On Thursday, Circle stated that it had terminated its prior business combination agreements with Concord and established a new contract with the company that is planned to be finalized by December 8, 2022, with the option of being stretched through January 31, 2023.

According to a Circle spokesperson, the amended agreement demonstrates both sides’ commitment to take the deal forward after it became evident that the initial closing date would not be met. 

They explained, “It was clear that the original deal would not be closed within the time parameters of the original business combination agreement (April 3, 2022). As part of the negotiation to extend the deal, the value of Circle was updated to reflect improved financial performance and the competitive position of USDC, along with a new initial outside date, December 8, 2022.”

Ambitious Circle

Circle is dedicated to becoming a publicly-traded company once the business merger is completed and a new company is established, as stated in the original agreement. That resulting company will acquire both Circle and Concord and become a publicly-traded company with the ticker symbol “CRCL” on the New York Stock Exchange.

While the company continues working tirelessly toward the completion of this transaction, the timeframe will ultimately be determined by several factors outside their control, such as the SEC’s evaluation of registration statement on Form S-4, the spokesperson added.

50 BILLION USDC (w/ thread below) pic.twitter.com/5FEaPmXjup

— Jeremy Allaire (@jerallaire) February 1, 2022

Circle has a great reputation in the cryptocurrency sector for putting a strong emphasis on regulatory compliance and demonstrating that its USDC reserves are fully backed. It previously said that it fully supports plans to regulate stablecoin issuers as Banks.

In December, Circle and Endaoment brought a disaster relief fund, as TheCoinRise reported. The market for stablecoins is now valued at $180.1 billion, up from around $10 billion in 2020.