EURC eurc

EURC (formerly called Euro Coin/known by the legacy symbol EUROC) is Circle's euro-backed stablecoin. It is designed to represent euros on public blockchains and is redeemable at par, 1 EUR for 1 EURC. Circle's developer documentation describes EURC as a digital euro backed 100% by euro-denominated reserves.

EURC is an e-money token (EMT) under the EU Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework. Circle's MiCA white paper identifies Circle Internet Financial Europe SAS (Circle France) as the issuer, a French Electronic Money Institution and registered digital-asset service provider. The white paper says EURC was first issued by Circle LLC in June 2022 and that Circle SAS became the sole issuer from July 1, 2024.

The token is intended to bring euro-denominated money to programmable finance: payments, transfers, FX settlement, exchange liquidity, and DeFi. Circle positions it as a multi-chain alternative to moving euros through fragmented traditional payment rails, combining blockchain settlement with a euro reference value.

EURC should not be confused with an interest-bearing investment. Circle's MiCA white paper states that EURC is not designed to create returns, increase in value, or otherwise accrue financial benefit to holders.

Euro payments and settlement are often fragmented across banking systems, jurisdictions, operating hours, and intermediaries. Circle's developer documentation frames EURC as a way to make euro-denominated transfers programmable, interoperable, and available on public blockchains, with near-instant and low-cost settlement.

Crypto markets also need a euro-native settlement and collateral asset rather than converting through a dollar stablecoin or relying exclusively on bank transfers. EURC supplies an onchain euro unit for FX trading, payments, borrowing, lending, and other DeFi workflows, while preserving a redemption path to fiat euros.

The trade-off is that EURC remains dependent on Circle as issuer, its reserve/custody and compliance arrangements, supported access channels, and the underlying blockchain networks. The MiCA white paper explicitly warns that EURC is not covered by EU investor-compensation or deposit-guarantee schemes.

Circle issues EURC through its Circle Mint service for qualified businesses in supported jurisdictions. When EUR is converted into EURC, the issuer records the corresponding token supply on supported networks; redemption burns or removes the corresponding token balance and pays euros under Circle's applicable redemption process. Circle's documentation says qualified businesses can convert euros to and from EURC through Circle Mint with near-instant settlement.

The reserve model is full-reserve and euro-denominated: for each EURC issued and still circulating, Circle SAS says it holds one euro or an equivalent amount of EUR-denominated assets in segregated accounts for holders' benefit. Circle says the reserves are held with regulated financial institutions and publishes monthly attestation reports; its transparency page states EURC is always redeemable 1:1 for euros.

EURC is deployed as a native token on multiple public chains. Circle's EURC page lists ERC-20 implementations on Ethereum, Avalanche, Base, and (currently listed) Cronos and World Chain, an SPL implementation on Solana, and a Stellar asset; the MiCA white paper's then-current supported set is Avalanche, Base, Ethereum, Solana, and Stellar. Users must select the correct network and token contract when transferring.

The EVM contract primitives are modeled after Circle's USDC contracts, while non-EVM versions use their chain-native token standards. EURC is available through exchanges and applications in supported ecosystems, but direct issuance through Circle Mint is institution-oriented rather than an unrestricted retail minting faucet.