Circle names BlackRock, Visa, DTCC as validators

Circle, the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, has announced the founding partners for its new blockchain network, Arc, ahead of its public launch scheduled for September 16. The initial validator group includes major financial institutions such as BlackRock, Visa, Mastercard, the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), Intercontinental Exchange (parent of the New York Stock Exchange), Standard Chartered, Galaxy, Global Payments, MoneyGram, SBI Group, and Sumitomo Corporation.

These partners will act as network operators, verifying transactions and securing the infrastructure for the blockchain, which is designed as a dedicated settlement layer for institutional payments and tokenized financial markets. Arc is currently operating in a private mainnet phase with over 100 selected ecosystem participants building applications. The network is built to offer sub-second transaction finality, stable USDC-denominated fees, optional privacy features, and compatibility with the Ethereum Virtual Machine.

The involvement of these traditional finance heavyweights signals significant institutional interest in blockchain-based financial infrastructure. According to Circle CEO Jeremy...