Shares of freshly listed Circle Internet Group extended their break-neck rally early this week, pushing the stable-coin issuer’s market value above both Coinbase and the $USDC stable-coin it manages. Circle peaked at $298 on Monday, up more than seven-fold from its 5 June initial public offering price of $31 and roughly 600 % higher year-to-date. The momentum reversed on Tuesday after the Bank for International Settlements warned that stable-coins pose risks to monetary sovereignty and financial stability. Circle fell 15 % to close at $223, leaving the stock 25 % below its Monday high. The slide was exacerbated by profit-taking from Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest, which sold about $1 billion worth of shares acquired at the IPO. Investors rotated into Coinbase, Circle’s main distribution partner for USDC. Coinbase shares advanced 3.6 % on Thursday to about $375, their highest level since the company went public in 2021, and are up roughly 50 % for the month. Bernstein raised its price target to $510, calling Coinbase the industry’s most misunderstood name, while Oppenheimer lifted its target to $395. The price swings come as U.S. lawmakers debate the GENIUS Act and other bills that would give federal regulators clear authority over stable-coins. While the prospect of regulation initially buoyed Circle, the BIS critique underscores the regulatory hurdles the sector still faces even as traditional financial firms and crypto exchanges position for a larger share of the market.