Circle buys nearly 1,000 blockchain patents from IBM

Stablecoin issuer Circle (CRCL) has acquired nearly 1,000 issued blockchain-anchored patents from IBM, a deal the firm said makes it the largest holder of blockchain patents in the United States.

The portfolio spans more than 680 patent families covering blockchain technology, banking, financial services, insurance, enterprise infrastructure, supply-chain verification and cloud security, according to a press release.

The deal’s financial terms weren’t disclosed.

IBM was already among the largest U.S. blockchain patent holders before the sale. A December 2025 analysis by patent analytics firm PatSnap credited it with 790 patents, alongside Advanced New Technologies and Bank of America.

Circle said the portfolio would support USDC, Circle Payments Network, its Arc blockchain and financial tools designed for AI agents. Circle and IBM also plan to explore further commercial opportunities, the document adds.

“Intellectual property is critical to advancing our mission and expanding adoption of onchain infrastructure,” said Sarah Wilson, Circle’s general counsel and corporate secretary.

Circle received its first patent, covering parallel blockchain data processing, in December 2023. It had earlier joined the LOT Network to protect its products from patent-assertion firms.

The company did not disclose how many acquired patents were issued in the U.S., whether IBM retained licensing rights or whether it plans to license or enforce the portfolio.

CoinDesk has reached out to Circle for comment but hasn’t heard back at the time of writing. CRCL shares are up 2.5% in premarket trading.