Circle President’s $31 Million Stock Sales Draw Scrutiny After Long-Term Appeal

Circle Internet Group, issuer of the USDC stablecoin, went public on the New York Stock Exchange on June 5, 2025, pricing shares at $31 under the ticker CRCL. President Heath Tarbert, a former chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, is a prominent advocate for the company’s effort to build internet-based financial infrastructure. Executive sales under Rule 10b5-1 plans are typically scheduled in advance, limiting discretion and offering a defense against insider-trading concerns, but they can still draw scrutiny as a signal of management conviction.

SEC Form 4 filings reviewed in reports published July 20, 2026, show Tarbert sold about $30.77 million of CRCL stock in 10 transactions after the IPO, with no disclosed open-market purchases. His largest disposal came on March 2, 2026, when he sold 122,007 shares for roughly $11.5 million. Most sales were executed under preset Rule 10b5-1 plans, and he retained about 503,000 shares. Even so, his call for investors to take a long-term view as CRCL fell from about $260 to $62 has fueled criticism over the gap between his message and trading record.