It’s been a busy year for USDC issuer Circle, with several new product launches and partnerships, a crypto banking crisis to contend with, the entry of PayPal into the stablecoin business, and plenty of new global regulatory developments, including a bill in the U.S. now making its way through Congress. Circle co-founder and CEO Jeremy Allaire joins Unchained for an in-depth discussion on the reasons behind Coinbase’s investment in Circle, how Circle has emerged stronger from the banking crisis, what he thinks of PYUSD, what he likes and doesn’t like about the current U.S. stablecoin bill, and his thoughts on what the final bill will look like. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights:

• why Circle and Coinbase created the Center Consortium and why Coinbase acquired a stake in Circle
• whether Circle is aiming to be acquired or become a public company, and why Jeremy is pursuing a "multi-decade" strategy
• why Circle partnered with MercadoLibre and the stablecoin usage in Latin America [may need to cut if embargo does not stick]
• how the company has been supporting developers to build applications
• why Circle is launching native USDC on so many new blockchains 
• what the purpose of cross-chain transfer protocol (CCTP) is and what the big problems with bridges are
• how Circle responded to Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse and why the world began to feel that "it's not safe to be exposed to the US"
• Jeremy's thoughts on the launch of PayPal's stablecoin, PYUSD
• why having stablecoin legislation is a "national priority," according to Jeremy
• why Jeremy is a proponent of a fully reserved banking system
• why he thinks the US needs to "aggressively" take action to preserve the global reserve currency status of the US dollar
• how China’s national digital currency is likely to develop
• how crypto can provide a better way of providing identity without giving up privacy
• why blockchain technology is much more than just a financial regulatory matter

Thank you to our sponsors!

• Crypto.com
• Arbitrum Foundation
• Toku
• LayerZero

Guest:

• Jeremy Allaire, cofounder, Chairman and CEO of Circle
• Previous appearances of Jeremy on Unchained: 
• Crypto on Every Corner: Driving Adoption With Jeremy Allaire and Meltem Demirors
• Circle’s Jeremy Allaire and Sean Neville on Why Crypto Will Be Bigger Than the Web
• Jeremy Allaire on Why the US Government Needs a New Category for Digital Assets

Links

• Unchained: 
• Coinbase Acquires Equity Stake in Circle Amid USDC Updates and Market Challenges
• Will PayPal’s PYUSD Steal Market Share From Tether and Circle?
• The Fall of SVB: What Happened and How It Affects Crypto
• 
  
• CoinDesk: 
• U.S. Stablecoin Bill Takes Big Step Despite Fight From Democrats, White House 
• Circle Seeks to Make Crypto Payments Easier With New 'Programmable Wallets'
• Written Statement of Jeremy Allaire Before the United States House Committee on Financial Services, “The Future of Digital Assets: Providing Clarity for the Digital Asset Ecosystem”
• South China Morning Post: Head of crypto firm Circle accepts ban in mainland China, but sees role for yuan-backed stablecoins 
• TechCrunch: Solana Pay integrates plug-in with Shopify for USDC payments 
• Decrypt: News Explorer — Circle Partners With Mercado Libre to Bring USDC to Chile 
• Jeremy’s comments on the launch of PYUSD

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