Circle's cirBTC gets one balance across Ethereum and Arc
Circle Gateway now supports cirBTC and EURC: one balance per asset across chains, burn-and-mint transfers, fees waived on Arc and a 7-day fallback exit.
CryptoGroup Newsroom · · 2 min read
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Circle has added its wrapped bitcoin token, cirBTC, and the euro stablecoin EURC to Gateway, letting holders keep one balance per asset that can be spent on any supported chain — for cirBTC, Ethereum and Circle's own Arc network. Circle announced the change on Oct. 23, and CryptoSlate detailed the limits on Monday.
What changed
Until now Gateway, Circle's cross-chain liquidity service, only handled USDC. It now covers three Circle-issued assets, each with its own separate balance:
| cirBTC | EURC | |
|---|---|---|
| Gateway chains | Ethereum, Arc | Ethereum, Arc, Avalanche, Base, Solana, World Chain |
| Gateway fee on Arc | Waived at launch | Waived at launch |
| Gateway fee elsewhere | 1 basis point | 1 basis point |
- A transfer burns the token on the source chain and mints the same token on the destination. Gateway never converts one asset into another, and moving cirBTC does not move native bitcoin.
- Circle advertises cross-chain access in under 500 milliseconds — but only after the deposit has finalized. CryptoSlate notes Circle's own table puts an Ethereum deposit at roughly 13 to 19 minutes on average before the balance appears.
- If Circle's API is unavailable, holders can reclaim funds directly from the Gateway Wallet contract after a seven-day delay. That is an emergency exit, not the normal transfer time.
Who it is for
Circle pitches the feature at exchanges, market makers, payment providers and custodians that would otherwise pre-fund wallets on every chain. Gateway integration is permissionless, but minting cirBTC — and redeeming it for real BTC, which Circle sends to a bitcoin address after burning the token — runs through Circle Mint, which is open to qualified businesses. Circle says cirBTC is backed one-for-one by bitcoin held at a regulated entity in its group, segregated from corporate assets. Gateway has processed more than $10 billion in volume, according to the company.
Why it matters
Wrapped bitcoin is how BTC reaches Ethereum-style DeFi, and the issuer you trust is the main risk. Circle is betting its stablecoin brand and native mint-and-burn design can win share from bridges that rely on third-party liquidity. If the terms are new to you, read what a crypto bridge is, how stablecoins work and the basics of what bitcoin is.
This article is for information only and is not financial advice. Crypto assets are volatile; do your own research. Read our disclaimer
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