USDC stablecoin issuer Circle has rolled out the public testnet for its payments-focused blockchain network. The company announced that more than 100 institutions, including Visa, HSBC, BlackRock, and AI firm Anthropic, are already participating in the testing phase. The testnet will allow developers, financial institutions, and enterprises to deploy, test, and build applications on Arc, which Circle calls an “Economic OS” for the internet.
Unveiled in August as an open Layer 1 network, Arc is designed to support developers and companies seeking to bring real-world financial activity on-chain. Circle stated that the blockchain’s purpose is to facilitate scalable, globally distributed economic activity across borders. The firm described Arc as a system capable of connecting every local market to the global digital economy.
Star-Studded Lineup
According to the official press release, the early ecosystem already includes organizations from across major regions such as the Americas, Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. Participants in the testnet collectively manage trillions of dollars in assets and facilitate billions of transactions daily.
Circle aims to position Arc as a foundation for stablecoin issuers and tokenized assets such as equities, credit, and money market funds. The firm also plans to use stablecoins as gas tokens on Arc and build native infrastructure for stablecoin swaps and foreign exchange liquidity.
Stablecoin issuers from several regions are already joining the testnet, including Forte Securities (AUDF in Australia), Avenia (BRLA in Brazil), JPYC Inc. (JPYC in Japan), BDACS (KRW1 in Korea), Juno (MXNB in Mexico), Coins.PH (PHPC in the Philippines), and Stablecorp (QCAD in Canada). Circle added that it is in discussions with additional issuers of dollar-, euro-, and other fiat-backed stablecoins to expand Arc’s network.
The testnet is also drawing interest from developer platforms and blockchain infrastructure providers. Participants include Alchemy, Chainlink, LayerZero, and thirdweb, alongside cross-chain protocols such as Across, Stargate, and Wormhole. Wallet and infrastructure partners include MetaMask, Fireblocks, Ledger, QuickNode, and Blockdaemon, who are helping make Arc accessible to both institutional and retail users.
Major market participants in decentralized finance are also testing Arc’s capabilities. Protocols such as Uniswap Labs, Aave, Curve, and Euler Finance are integrating liquidity and lending tools, while centralized exchanges, including Coinbase, Kraken, and Robinhood, are exploring connectivity. The company stated that market makers such as GSR, Wintermute, Galaxy Digital, and Cumberland are also contributing liquidity support.
Beyond digital asset trading, Circle is engaging with global payments and fintech firms to expand Arc’s real-world use cases. Companies like Mastercard, Visa, WorldPay, Brex, Nuvei, and Amazon Web Services are part of the testnet phase. Capital market firms, including Apollo, BNY Mellon, the New York Stock Exchange, and State Street, are also involved.
Banks and asset managers participating include Deutsche Bank, HSBC, Goldman Sachs, Standard Chartered, Invesco, and BlackRock.
Distributed Governance
While Circle is overseeing the initial phase, the company plans for Arc to eventually be operated by a global set of participants, including financial institutions, technology firms, and developers. The roadmap includes expanding validator participation, building transparent governance frameworks, and enabling community input.
The long-term goal is for Arc to function as an open, neutral, and collectively managed layer of economic infrastructure for the internet.
This development follows Circle's public listing in June 2025, when the company raised $1.1 billion and achieved a $6.9 billion valuation.