Circle stock came under fresh pressure after Visa moved closer to a stablecoin platform that could increase competition for USDC in global payments.
Visa Stablecoin Platform Adds Pressure on Circle Stock
Circle Internet Group traded around $62.10 to $63.77 after falling about 5.47% in its latest active session. The decline followed renewed investor focus on competition in the stablecoin market, where Circle’s USDC remains one of the leading dollar-backed tokens.
Visa is preparing an internal stablecoin platform for banks, fintech firms, and merchant clients. The platform will give clients easier access to USD-pegged tokens and support stablecoin use across treasury, settlement, and money movement systems.
The service is expected to launch with Open Standard’s OUSD, a stablecoin that some market watchers view as a potential rival to Circle’s USDC. OUSD is expected to launch later this year with support from a large group of financial and technology firms.
Visa already supports Circle’s USDC and Paxos’ USDG, but the addition of OUSD adds another stablecoin option for its client network. Visa’s merchant base includes more than 200 million clients globally, giving the platform broad reach if adoption grows.
OUSD Raises Competition Questions for USDC
OUSD has drawn attention because its model is expected to share much of the income earned from reserves. Businesses will also be able to mint and redeem Open USD without fees or volume limits, based on the project’s stated structure.
More than 140 companies, including Visa, Ripple, Stripe, Mastercard, BlackRock, and Coinbase, previously joined the Open Standard effort. That group gives OUSD a strong starting network as stablecoin competition moves deeper into payments and settlement.
Visa’s Global Head of Growth, Rubail Birwadker, described the business need behind the platform. He said, “It’s less about accessing stablecoins and more about how… this interoperate[s] with their treasury settlement, their money movement workflows, [and] their existing bank setups.”
Visa Chief Product and Strategy Officer Jack Forestell also linked stablecoins to payment infrastructure. He said, “AI is transforming the front end of commerce. Stablecoins are reshaping the back end.” He added that Visa’s role is to help stablecoins work securely and reliably at global scale.
Analysts Split as Circle Gains Regulatory Approval
Circle also faces pressure from analyst concerns. Mizuho Securities recently downgraded Circle stock to Underperform and lowered its price target to $50, citing rising competition from OUSD and the risk to Circle’s interest-income model.
Compass Point took a more balanced view by raising its Circle price target to $62 while keeping a Neutral rating. Wall Street remains divided as investors weigh Circle’s growth prospects against new rivals and future revenue-sharing talks with Coinbase.
Despite the bearish forecasts, Circle recently secured a regulatory milestone on July 10, 2026, after receiving final approval from the OCC to establish a national trust bank. That approval allows Circle to directly custody its own reserves and may strengthen its position in the regulated stablecoin market.
Circle continues to expand USDC partnerships despite new competition. Jeremy Allaire noted that more global payments leaders are joining the USDC network after Circle partnered with Japan’s JCB to bring USDC to 40 million merchants across cross-border and everyday transactions.
