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Circle acquires nearly 1,000 IBM blockchain patents to bolster USDC
The deal covers more than 680 patent families and nearly 1,000 issued patents, positioning Circle as the top U.S. patent holder in blockchain.
Circle Internet Group strengthened its stablecoin and enterprise blockchain position by acquiring nearly 1,000 blockchain patents from International Business Machines, a move aimed at making its infrastructure more legally defensible for institutional adoption, according to MarketBeat Ratings.
The transaction includes over 680 patent families and nearly 1,000 globally issued patents covering areas such as foundational blockchain architecture, institutional banking infrastructure, and secure cloud operations.
MarketBeat Ratings frames the acquisition as a structural shift for the stablecoin market, arguing that major banks and other large capital providers typically require regulatory clarity and enforceable technology rather than “legally ambiguous” software environments.
The report also links the purchase to competitive positioning between Circle’s USDC and Tether’s USDT, saying USDC benefits from ownership of patented infrastructure while Tether remains more closely tied to offshore retail trading volume.