Shares of Circle Internet Corp. (CRCL) plummeted 5.28% in pre-market trading on Tuesday, as a confluence of macro headwinds and company‑specific challenges battered the USDC issuer.

The decline tracked a broad pullback in digital‑asset markets, where Bitcoin exchange‑traded funds snapped a seven‑session inflow streak with over $465 million in outflows amid rising expectations of further Federal Reserve interest‑rate hikes and renewed geopolitical uncertainty. The cautious mood overshadowed positive news from Circle’s acquisition of IBM’s blockchain patent portfolio earlier in the week.

Adding to the pressure, Mizuho Securities recently downgraded Circle to Underperform from Neutral and slashed its price target to $50 from $85, citing ongoing erosion in USDC’s market capitalization and intensifying competition from Open USD. Persistent selling by Circle’s president, Heath Tarbert, who has offloaded shares ten times for a cumulative $30.77 million, further weighed on sentiment, while the broader crypto‑concept stock sector also declined in overnight trading.