Circle, the company behind the $61 billion stablecoin USDC, made a roaring debut on the New York Stock Exchange Thursday, becoming the first stablecoin issuer to go public and making CEO and cofounder Jeremy Allaire a billionaire.

Circle Internet Group Inc and some of its shareholders raised nearly US$1.1bil in an upsized initial public offering (IPO), according to a person familiar with the matter, pricing its shares above a marketed range in a sign that stablecoin issuers are winning greater acceptance.

Circle Internet on Wednesday priced its upsized U.S. initial public offering at $31 apiece, raising $1.05 billion, adding fresh momentum to a growing pipeline of late-stage cryptocurrency firms eyeing public markets.