Circle’s tokenized U.S. Treasury fund, USYC, has expanded to Solana, marking the product’s first foray beyond Ethereum, Near, Base, and Canton networks. With a market cap of $635 million, USYC now ranks fifth among tokenized treasury funds, with plans to launch on BNB Chain next as Circle continues its multi-chain strategy.
This expansion comes as the tokenized treasury market has exploded from $2.4 billion to nearly $8 billion in just one year. Think of it as Wall Street’s traditional assets getting a blockchain makeover – like your grandfather’s reliable treasury bonds slipping into sleek digital attire. Institutional investors, it seems, can’t get enough of these on-chain real-world assets.
Blockchain is giving grandpa’s treasuries a digital facelift, and the suits on Wall Street are lining up for more.
Circle’s choice of Solana wasn’t accidental. The network’s penny-pinching transaction fees, lightning-fast settlement, and high throughput make it particularly appealing for financial applications. Solana’s Proof of History mechanism contributes to its ability to process up to 65,000 transactions per second, making it ideal for financial products like USYC. This integration follows Circle’s acquisition of Hashnote, USYC’s issuer, earlier in 2025. The Solana network enables low-cost, fast transactions that are essential for institutional adoption of tokenized treasuries. Solana’s SPL token standard provides deterministic settlement capabilities that enhance the efficiency of USYC operations.
Don’t expect to start trading USYC from your personal wallet, though. This isn’t your average crypto token – it’s wrapped in regulatory bubble wrap. The fund is exclusively available to non-U.S. institutional investors who pass KYC verification, with wallet allow-listing required. Protocols incorporating USYC must build eligibility checks directly into their applications.
For qualified institutions, USYC offers compelling use cases. It can serve as collateral for margin trading, function as a yield-bearing asset in DeFi platforms, and power derivative strategies. Users can subscribe, redeem, and convert USYC to USDC in real-time through Solana’s infrastructure.
The permissioned architecture reflects ongoing regulatory challenges surrounding tokenized real-world assets. Smart contracts must incorporate compliance tools to guarantee only eligible participants can access the product.
As tokenized treasury funds continue their exponential growth, USYC’s expansion to Solana signals Circle’s commitment to connecting their USDC stablecoin with yield-generating treasuries. Their ambitious goal? Capturing 50% of the stablecoin market through this treasury-backed strategy.
