a16z Crypto, which invested $75 million in Circle's (CRCL) proprietary Layer 1 chain Arc, explained the background, stating, "Existing blockchains cannot meet the regulatory and technical demands of large institutions, but Arc can." a16z Crypto partners Ali Yahya and Noah Levine explained, "The annual transaction volume of stablecoins is nearing $9 trillion, growing comparably to Visa and PayPal. USDC's circulation has exceeded $27 billion, and most cross-chain liquidity is processed through Circle's CCTP. However, existing blockchain infrastructure was designed for individual investors. Arc aims to fill this gap, and Circle possesses advantages that are difficult for other projects to replicate. We believe that in the future, a few blockchains will become the backbone of the global financial system, and Arc is highly likely to be one of them."
