Circle, the company behind the USDC stablecoin, cut about 5% of its workforce during the third quarter as it sought to align its organization with its operating model and strategic priorities, according to its Q3 results released Wednesday.

The company did not disclose how many employees were affected or identify the teams involved. Circle recorded $9.1 million in restructuring expenses during the quarter, primarily for notice-period payments, severance, employee benefits and related costs. Those expenses were partly offset by a $5.7 million reversal of stock-based compensation after unvested shares held by departing employees were forfeited.

The workforce reduction came during a profitable quarter. Circle reported $226 million in net income from continuing operations, a 5% increase from the same period a year earlier. Total revenue and reserve income rose 17% to $865 million, while adjusted EBITDA increased 85% year over year to $317 million.

Much of the growth came from outside Circle’s core business. Other revenue increased to $207 million, including $182 million from the presale of ARC, the token for the company’s Arc blockchain. Reserve income — the interest Circle earns on assets backing USDC and its largest source of revenue — fell 8% to $658 million as interest rates on those reserves declined.

The average amount of USDC in circulation increased 8% year over year to $73.3 billion. The amount ended the quarter at $73.9 billion, unchanged from the prior quarter. Circle said USDC’s share of the U.S. dollar stablecoin market slipped to 27%.

The results thus combine growth in Circle’s payments and blockchain operations with pressure in its largest revenue stream. The unchanged quarter-end USDC circulation and lower reported market share are additional measures to watch alongside the company’s expansion of Arc and its payments network.

Chief Executive Officer Jeremy Allaire did not mention the workforce reduction in his comments on the results or in a Wednesday post describing the third quarter as “a big quarter for Circle.” He said USDC accounted for 79% of all stablecoin transaction volume, up from 66% a year earlier, and that Circle’s payments network ended the quarter with $41 billion in annualized volume, a 15-fold increase.

“In January, the GENIUS Act takes effect and regulated digital dollars go mainstream,” Allaire wrote. “Every layer of our platform is live and ready for it.”

The post also said that $13.9 trillion had moved on-chain during the quarter, an increase of 49%, and that a record $208 billion of USDC had been minted and redeemed, equivalent to about $2.3 billion per day. It said the Arc mainnet had gone live with more than 100 institutions and applications.

Q3 was a big quarter for Circle. → USDC carried 79% of all stablecoin transaction volume, up from 66% a year ago, and $13.9T moved onchain (+49%) → A record $208B of USDC was minted and redeemed, about $2.3B every day → Arc mainnet went live, with 100+ institutions and apps… pic.twitter.com/euVfyHBUXX — Jeremy Allaire (@jerallaire) November 4, 2026

Circle’s staff reduction comes as the company expands. In September, it launched the public mainnet of Arc, with BlackRock, DTCC and Visa among its permissioned validators. Allaire said in October that Circle planned to enter about 40 emerging and developing markets. The company has also partnered with payments technology firm ACI Worldwide to pilot USDC settlement on Colombia’s instant-payments network.

Crypto’s layoff wave

Circle is the latest in a series of crypto companies to reduce staffing this year, with companies citing weaker markets, artificial intelligence or both.

Coinbase cut 14% of its workforce in May. CEO Brian Armstrong attributed the move to the crypto downturn and the company’s adoption of AI. The Ethereum Foundation cut 20% of its staff in June as part of a reorganization, while custody firm BitGo cut 15% that month to focus on AI and stablecoins.

Crypto exchange Luno cut one-fifth of its global staff in July, citing automation. Crypto exchange-traded fund issuer Bitwise cut 14% of its staff in August.