Circle Internet Corp. closed at $87.14, down 7.53% from the previous close.

CRCL’s options order flow featured a notable $340,000 put purchase on the September 4, 2026 $80.00 strike, alongside a broadly bearish large-trade profile. The single put buy accounted for the bulk of institutional-sized activity, with no meaningful bullish large-order participation to offset it, leaving the bulk-order tape skewed toward downside exposure and cautious positioning in the stock.

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Options Indicators

CRCL’s implied volatility is 78.84%, while its IV percentile is just 15.94%, indicating that although the absolute IV level looks high, it is still low relative to its own historical range. In other words, the stock’s option volatility backdrop is on the cheaper side rather than elevated, and with an IV/HV ratio of 1.25, implied volatility is running modestly above historical volatility, suggesting the market is pricing in somewhat more forward-looking uncertainty than what has recently been realized.

The Call/Put volume ratio is 1.78.

Large Trades

A put purchase worth $340,000 stood out in the displayed large trades, with 4,000 contracts bought on the September 4, 2026 $80.00 put. With the reference stock price at $87.14, this strike was out of the money at the time of the trade, making it a relatively low-cost bearish position that would gain leverage if CRCL declines toward or below $80.00 by expiration. The trade clearly reflects downside positioning, either as a directional bearish bet on near-term weakness or as portfolio protection against a pullback.

Overall, the bulk-order flow points to a clear bearish bias in CRCL. The large-trade activity was concentrated entirely in put buying, with no meaningful bullish large-order participation to offset it, which suggests traders were actively paying premium for downside exposure rather than selling volatility or structuring neutral income trades. Taken together, the figures indicate cautious to negative sentiment, with institutional-sized positioning leaning toward expectations of price weakness or elevated downside risk in the stock.

Strategy Reference

For traders seeking low assignment probability while collecting premium, selling the September 4, 2026 $70.00 put could offer a wider downside cushion below the $80.00 put strike that just traded, though sellers should monitor the bearish large-order flow. Alternatively, a bear put spread using the $80.00 and $70.00 strikes may help limit margin and defined-risk exposure for those who share the bearish view without taking an outright short stock position.