Circle says $3.3B of its ~$40B USDC reserves remain at Silicon Valley Bank and that the crypto payments firm will follow state and federal regulators' guidance
- After being largely silent on Friday, Circle said it has $3.3 billion in exposure to Silicon Valley Bank …
The Block Frank Chaparro
Context & Ripple Effects
USDC had already lost its dollar peg and drawn $1B in net redemptions after Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse. Circle’s disclosure identifies the size of the reserve exposure at the center of that run and makes regulatory handling of the bank material to USDC holders.
The episode also puts pressure on Circle’s earlier detailed but unaudited reserve-asset disclosure. Later coverage shows USDC reserves were largely placed in a BlackRock-managed money market fund, underscoring how reserve design became central to the product’s credibility.
First-order effects
- Circle and USDC holders are immediately exposed to how state and federal regulators handle Silicon Valley Bank, because $3.3B of the reserves remain there.
- The disclosed amount sharpens the redemption and peg-risk assessment for USDC users already reacting to the bank’s collapse.
Second-order effects
- Circle’s other reserve-bank relationships face greater scrutiny, since the earlier coverage identified Silicon Valley Bank as one of six banks managing USDC cash reserves.
- Circle’s reserve reporting becomes a practical liquidity-management tool: users need to assess not just the reported reserve total but where cash is held and how it can be accessed.
Third-order effects
- The episode points toward stablecoin credibility being determined as much by the resilience and transparency of its regulated reserve infrastructure as by the token’s on-chain settlement function.
- The later shift toward a BlackRock-managed money market fund illustrates a broader move to structure reserves around institutional vehicles rather than dispersed bank-cash exposure, though that can introduce a different concentration point.
The trend: Stablecoins are being pushed to treat reserve custody, liquidity access, and regulatory oversight as core product features rather than back-office details.
Related: Crypto legitimacy gap · Programmable settlement versus policy control · Circle · USDC redemptions after Silicon Valley Bank collapse · Circle’s USDC reserve-asset breakdown · Circle’s later USDC reserve structure
Related Coverage
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Discussion
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@circle
@circle
on x
1/ Following the confirmation at the end of today that the wires initiated on Thursday to remove balances were not yet processed, $3.3 billion of the ~$40 billion of USDC reserves remain at SVB.
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@circle
@circle
on x
2/ Like other customers and depositors who relied on SVB for banking services, Circle joins calls for continuity of this important bank in the U.S. economy and will follow guidance provided by state and Federal regulators.
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@unusual_whales
@unusual_whales
on x
@circle The full list of banks that held cash for Circle's USDC are Bank of New York Mellon, Citizens Trust Bank, Customers Bank, New York Community Bank (a division of Flagstar Bank, N.A.), Signature Bank, Silicon Valley Bank and Silvergate Bank. Read more: https://unusualwhales…
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@cryptowendyo
Wendy O
on x
Dear @SenWarren this was a UNITED STATE OF AMERICA REGULATED AND LICENSED BANKING FAILURE NOT A CRYPTO ISSUE Circle did everything they were told to do, your people fxcked this up What are you going to do to fix it? oh that's right ... pass the cost to American Underdogs https://…
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@asvanevik
Alex Svanevik
on x
$3.3B of USDC reserves stuck in SVB. -> 8% of supply. https://twitter.com/...
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@michaeljordaan
Michael Jordaan
on x
The irony: a stablecoin is suffering because of a bank failure. Not banks failing because of crypto. https://www.coindesk.com/...
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@circle
@circle
on x
Silicon Valley Bank is one of six banking partners Circle uses for managing the ~25% portion of USDC reserves held in cash. While we await clarity on how the FDIC receivership of SVB will impact its depositors, Circle & USDC continue to operate normally. https://www.circle.com/..…
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@0xfoobar
@0xfoobar
on x
worst worst worst case SVB prob sees 95% recovery imo so fair value is ~$0.995, not 92 cents lmfao https://twitter.com/...
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@1markmoss
Mark Moss
on x
USDC stablecoin, which is or was fast on the path to becoming a US-CBDC, doesn't have your dollars anymore... they lent them to a bank that lent them to the government, and they went up in 🔥 https://twitter.com/...
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@silvermanjacob
Jacob Silverman
on x
That doesn't sound good. https://twitter.com/...
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@alice_comfy
Alice
on x
Not sure what other assets Circle has but assuming equal weighting between banks, hole is probably around 4%. Worst case scenario is if everything they got out of Silvergate went to Silicon Valley bank, then it could be around 5%. No idea how this would work for the coin. https:/…
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@northrocklp
Hal Press
on x
So circle has 3.3B at SVB. Can assume they get at least 90% of that back. Should be able to cover a 330mm shortfall if thats what's required. Worst case they have 99.1c on the dollar. https://twitter.com/...
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@autismcapital
@autismcapital
on x
Oh boy. https://twitter.com/...
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@epro
Emil Protalinski
on x
Funds flowing from $USDC to $USDT because Circle holds some USDC reserves in Silicon Valley Bank. Crypto trades 24/7 so this weekend won't be much of a reprieve. https://twitter.com/...
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@mikeburgersburg
@mikeburgersburg
on x
$USDC not looking good. https://twitter.com/... https://twitter.com/...
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@chainlinkgod
@chainlinkgod
on x
Never thought I'd see the day where there would be real tangible concerns around USDC's reserves Uncharted waters here, especially with some of Circle's other banking partners now also raising some eyebrows https://techcrunch.com/...
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@coinbase
@coinbase
on x
We are temporarily pausing USDC:USD conversions over the weekend while banks are closed. During periods of heightened activity, conversions rely on USD transfers from the banks that clear during normal banking hours. When banks open on Monday, we plan to re-commence conversions.
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@coinbase
@coinbase
on x
Your assets remain safe & available for on-chain sends.
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@simonpb
Simon Brown
on x
Crypto needing banks to be open in order to operate in periods of stress kinda defeats the purpose of crypto ?! https://twitter.com/...
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@edzitron
Ed Zitron
on x
This is so bad lmao oh no!! https://twitter.com/...