Circle reports 30% USDC custody growth on Kraken, nearly 1B EURC traded

Kraken has been one of the venues where Circle is building out stablecoin distribution, with the exchange now tied to both USDC custody growth and EURC trading activity. The September 2025 partnership gives a clear starting point for the move, and the Oct. 28 update shows Circle using Kraken as a live example of how its products are being used. USDC and EURC serve different currency rails, so the update points to Circle pushing more than one stablecoin line at once.

For users and institutions on Kraken, the immediate takeaway is that stablecoin activity on the exchange has become deeper in both dollar-linked and euro-linked form. That can matter for traders, treasuries, and builders who want a venue with more than one fiat-linked token available for transfers, settlement, or liquidity management. It also suggests Kraken is being used as part of Circle’s market expansion rather than just as a listing venue.

Stablecoins are often promoted as payment and settlement tools, but this update also shows how closely their reach depends on exchange infrastructure and distribution deals. Circle’s numbers on Kraken point to a market where liquidity concentration can be built through a single platform relationship, which may help adoption while also concentrating activity in fewer venues. The trade-off is between easier access to multi-currency stablecoin liquidity and a system that relies heavily on large centralized exchanges.

What is still not clear is how much of the reported growth reflects active user demand versus a broader shift in how Kraken routes stablecoin activity after the partnership. The two updates give the custody and trading totals, but not the breakdown by customer type, geography, or use case. Further disclosure from Circle or Kraken on volumes over time would show whether the figures represent a one-off surge or a sustained change in how the exchange is used.