Crypto company Circle and institutional-grade trading platform Legend Trading have jointly announced plans to expand stablecoin services in the Latin American and Asia-Pacific regions.
The firms told Decrypt that the collaboration aims to broaden the scope of USDC to better serve large entities and institutional customers that are currently working with Legend Trading in “two rapidly growing markets.”
Legend Trading claims to serve over 800 institutions, processing $1 billion monthly and operating in more than 150 countries, according to its website,
“As a premier crypto trading firm, trading through Legend’s platform provides deep liquidity and high settlement efficiency, presenting an attractive solution for institutional clients to access USDC,” read the joint press release.
The alliance is positioned to meet institutional interest for stablecoins in regions that have historically exhibited a need for digital dollars. As Hao Chen, CEO of Legend Trading, commented, “Both APAC and LATAM have shown explosive growth in the crypto realm, and we're excited to propel USDC adoption to new heights in these markets.”
Kash Razzaghi, Chief Business Officer for Circle, echoed Chen’s comments, noting that the company has seen an important uptick in demand for stablecoins in both markets, and that the collaboration with Legend Trading is a bid in that direction.
“Working with Legend Trading will help unlock liquidity and access to digital dollars in these key markets,” he said, adding that Circle will offer always-on settlement infrastructure for large regional entities.
Today’s news extends a seemingly endless sequence of announcements from Circle as the company continues an aggressive international expansion campaign.
Jeremy Allaire, Circle’s CEO, has previously said that 70% of USDC’s market share comes from outside the U.S., although the company’s stablecoin has been struggling to capture market share, plummeting to multi-year lows.
The Asia-Pacific region has turned out to be decidedly pro-crypto over the past several months, with several countries adopting clear-cut rules and regulations for the industry.
The Circle and Legend Trading partnership appears to be a signal to the market that they are listening.