Jeremy Allaire (제레미 알레어), CEO of Circle, said it is very unlikely USDC would be used to pay tolls in Iran’s Strait of Hormuz. He said sanctioned regimes would not want to use assets that could be frozen quickly. Allaire also addressed criticism that Circle did not immediately freeze funds after the early-April Drift Protocol hack, saying freezes require instructions from law enforcement or courts. He said Circle wants a safe-harbor provision in the CLARITY Act.

Circle is expanding its influence in Europe’s stablecoin market with its euro-backed stablecoin EURC, prompting debate over whether the gains reflect product competitiveness or regulatory and policy shifts. DeFi analyst Ignas calls it “Europe’s failure” and says Circle benefited from MiCA, claiming it secured licensing and rapidly lifted market share. He also links the trend to digital euro discussions and argues Circle is pursuing a similar approach in the UK. Critics also question Circle’s response to a Solana-based Drift Protocol hack.