Circle announced it has acquired key assets from IBM’s blockchain portfolio, making the company the largest holder of blockchain patents in the United States.
The transaction adds more than 680 patent families and nearly 1,000 issued patents worldwide to Circle’s intellectual property portfolio, according to the company’s announcement. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, and neither company confirmed whether IBM retained any licensing rights related to the transferred patents.
The acquired portfolio extends beyond blockchain technology and includes patents covering banking, financial services, insurance, enterprise infrastructure, supply chain verification, and secure cloud operations. Circle said the intellectual property strengthens its long-term strategy as it continues expanding products built on blockchain infrastructure.
Sarah Wilson, Circle’s general counsel and corporate secretary, said IBM has been a pioneer in technological innovation. She added that intellectual property remains critical to advancing the company’s “mission and expanding adoption of on-chain infrastructure.”
Patents strengthen Circle products and enterprise services
Circle said the newly acquired patents will support several existing products, including USDC, the Circle Payments Network, and Arc, its enterprise blockchain platform. The company also stated that the portfolio will contribute to financial tools designed for AI agents, an area it has continued developing through its Agent Stack offerings.
Both companies also indicated they intend to explore additional commercial opportunities together following the transaction.
The acquisition changes the ranking among major blockchain patent holders in the United States. Patent analytics firm PatSnap reported in December 2025 that IBM held 790 blockchain patents, placing it alongside Advanced New Technologies and Bank of America. By acquiring most of IBM’s blockchain portfolio, Circle now moves ahead of those competitors.
Circle received its first blockchain-related patent in December 2023 for parallel blockchain data processing. The company also previously joined the LOT Network, an organization created to protect members from patent assertion entities.
Market response and regulatory momentum
The announcement generated modest gains in premarket trading. Circle shares rose 2.5%, while IBM shares increased 1.6%.
The market reaction follows a challenging period for Circle’s stock performance. Yahoo Finance reported that CRCL had declined 66% over the previous 12 months to $62.36, while IBM had fallen 18% to $214.19 as of July 27. Circle’s shares experienced significant volatility during 2025, climbing from about $81 to a peak near $293 before surrendering most of those gains.
The acquisition also follows recent regulatory progress for Circle. On July 10, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency granted final approval for Circle National Trust to operate as a national trust bank providing digital asset custody services. Earlier in May, Circle raised $222 million through the sale of Arc tokens before the blockchain’s launch, resulting in a network valuation of $3 billion.
