Circle, issuer of USDC, one of the industry's largest stablecoins, launched Euro Coin for trading on large, centralized exchanges under the ticker EURC, redeemable 1:1 for the euro.

Euro Coin is described by Circle as being a "regulated, euro-backed stablecoin issued under the same full-reserve model and built on the same pillars of trust, transparency, and security that have made USDC one of the world's most trusted digital currencies."

Circle's euro-backed stablecoin runs on the Ethereum blockchain; support for additional blockchains, including Solana, is in the works, Circle said.

As an Ethereum ERC-20 standard token, EURC works with ERC-20-compatible wallets, protocols and other blockchain services.

Several crypto firms support EURC. These include Anchorage Digital, Binance.US, Bitstamp, Compound, Curve, CYBAVO, DFX, Fireblocks, FTX, Huobi Global, Ledger, MetaMask Institutional and Uniswap Protocol. In fact, Uniswap (v3), per CoinGecko, is currently the most active exchange.

"EURC is designed to be stable," CoinGecko said, noting that the coin was not only 100% backed by euros but by euros that are held in euro-denominated banking accounts.

Circle's efforts to bridge crypto-native and traditional financial services have been geared around giving businesses the ability to use EURC tokens to move euro liquidity on-chain, as well as accept and make euro payments, globally, Circle has explained.

When was EURC created and how much was it worth?

Circle launched EURC in June of 2022. It remains fully backed by euro-denominated reserves held in the custody of institutions regulated in the U.S. Among the noteworthy early banking collaborators was Silvergate, a crypto-friendly bank that is reportedly under scrutiny related to its ties/exposure to FTX which collapsed in early November 2022.

According to Circle, EURC was initially accessible via Silvergate’s Euro SEN network, requiring potential users to have an active banking relationship with the bank.

As of late November 2022, EURC was, as advertised, 1:1 pegged to the euro, trading at about $1.04 in terms of USD value, according to CoinDesk which lists the euro-backed stablecoin as the 541st-largest digital asset, with a market capitalization of $26 million.

The all-time high price of EURC is $1.11, reached on Sep 30, 2022, per CoinGecko.

Back in June, Circle told CoinDesk that EURC reserves would solely comprise "cash and euro government debt."

How is the price of EURC determined?

There are 25 million EURC tokens in circulation, each of them having an equivalent euro-denominated reserve held in custody at U.S. financial institutions, according to Circle, per Cointelegraph.

Why does EURC have value?

"Businesses will be able to trade for EURC and withdraw it from exchanges and put it in Ethereum-compatible wallets," Circle has said (CoinDesk).

“There is clear market demand for a digital currency denominated in euros, the world’s second most traded currency after the U.S. dollar,” said Jeremy Allaire, Circle founder and CEO.

Is EURC secure?

Liquidity providers (LPs) have access to enhanced security by avoiding risks associated with AMMs, as a project document explained.

What are the main benefits of EURC?

It fills a void. European banks are viewed by experts as bound to be more active in the coming years. This is despite regulatory uncertainty and headwinds connected with the collapse of FTX. Still, Circle’s decision to launch a euro-backed stablecoin would appear prescient if only because one is sorely needed. The euro accounts for only 0.2% of the global stablecoin market capitalization. EURC is a promising step in the right direction, experts have said.

It can settle in minutes. And it is fully backed by euro-denominated reserves.

Businesses can use EURC to widen euro liquidity and connect with digital markets.

What do critics say about EURC?

Take-up will remain limited because of the still murky picture surrounding European regulation of crypto markets

Also, the euro has weakened against the dollar during the latter part of 2022.