USD Coin issuer Circle announced the mutual termination of its proposed merger with the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Concord Acquisition.
The deal was announced in July 2021 with a preliminary valuation of $4.5 billion and was then amended in February 2022 when Circle’s valuation ballooned to $9 billion. USDC is currently the second-largest stablecoin in circulation, with a market capitalization of $43 billion.
Under the terms of the agreements, Concord had until Dec. 10 to consummate the transaction or seek a shareholder vote for an extension. However, it appears that Concord chose to have the time limit lapse instead.
Circle recapped that it became profitable in the third quarter of 2022, with total revenue and reserve interest income of $274 million and net income of $43 million. The company currently has $400 million in unrestricted cash.
While the stakeholders didn’t directly state the reason behind the deal’s fallout, the ongoing crypto winter has led to a spiral of downward revisions for many companies’ valuations.