NYSE-listed US stablecoin issuer Circle Internet Group has agreed to acquire Singapore-based cross-border payments firm Tazapay in an all-stock transaction carrying aggregate consideration of $400 million, just over a year after Circle entered the company’s cap table.
The purchase price was not disclosed in Circle’s announcement of the deal, but was detailed in a regulatory filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
The transaction set up an exit for a group of investors that includes Peak XV Partners, Ripple, Coinbase Ventures and CMT Digital.
Top shareholders of Tazapay
Under the agreement, a wholly-owned Circle subsidiary will acquire all outstanding shares in Tazapay that are not already held by Circle or its affiliates. The sellers will receive Circle Class A common shares equivalent to $400 million, subject to adjustments for Tazapay’s cash, outstanding debt and transaction expenses.
“Stablecoin settlement is becoming core infrastructure in the global economy, and combining USDC with Tazapay’s world-class banking relationships, local payout rails, and institutional customer base will accelerate worldwide USDC adoption,” said Jeremy Allaire, Co-Founder, CEO, and Chairman at Circle.
Circle’s most recent acquisitions before Tazapay include Taiwan-based crypto infrastructure provider CYBAVO and payments orchestration startup Elements, both acquired in 2022.
Under the all-stock deal, Tazapay shareholders will receive shares in NYSE-listed Circle in exchange for their holdings in the privately held Singapore company, rather than cash consideration.
The transaction is expected to close in 2027, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals, including from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).
The deal comes barely six months after Circle Ventures led an extension of Tazapay’s Series B round in March, bringing the total size of the financing to $36 million. Coinbase Ventures and CMT Digital joined as new investors in the extension, alongside Peak XV, GMO Venture Partners and January Capital. Ripple, Norinchukin Capital, ARC180 and RTP Global were also existing backers.
Circle had joined Tazapay’s cap table in a Series B tranche in August 2025, alongside Peak XV, Ripple, Norinchukin Capital and GMO VenturePartners. January Capital, ARC180 and RTP Global also participated in that round.
“This acquisition will increase Circle’s capability to originate and terminate payments globally, near-instant and 24/7, which is a meaningful step toward making USDC the default payment rail for cross-border commerce,” said Irfan Ganchi, Senior Vice President of Payments at Circle.
Circle said the acquisition will accelerate the global expansion of its payments infrastructure. Tazapay processes more than $25 billion in annualised payment volume and has local payout rails across more than 100 markets. About 60% of its transaction volume already involves stablecoins, according to a statement.
The acquisition comes as stablecoins move deeper into mainstream payments infrastructure, particularly in cross-border transactions. Stablecoins processed $33 trillion in transaction volume in 2025, up 72% from a year earlier, while investors have increasingly shifted capital toward the licensed payment rails, banking partnerships and cross-border networks that enable their use.
Southeast Asia has emerged as a key testing ground for that shift, given its fragmented payments landscape and high volume of cross-border commerce.
Circle follows a recent string of deals and funding activity around stablecoin payments infrastructure in Asia. Kraken acquired Hong Kong-based stablecoin payments firm Reap Technologies for up to $600 million, while KAST and Fasset have raised fresh capital to expand stablecoin-powered payments and banking infrastructure across the region.
