Circle Bolsters USDC Infrastructure with Malachite Acquisition for New Arc Blockchain

Stablecoin giant Circle has acquired Malachite, a consensus engine developed by Informal Systems, to power its upcoming payments-focused Arc blockchain. The deal includes key personnel joining Circle's team, though financial details remain confidential.

This strategic MOVE follows Circle's recent unveiling of its layer-1 blockchain designed specifically for stablecoin transactions. With USDC's market cap standing strong at $65 billion, Circle is positioning itself as a leader in the projected $1 trillion stablecoin market that's set to transform global payments infrastructure.

Malachite's technology, built on Tendermint's consensus algorithm, offers robust flexibility and system reliability for decentralized networks. The acquisition maintains the project's open-source status under Apache 2.0 license, enabling continued community development while Informal Systems focuses on other blockchain infrastructure initiatives.