Circle has acquired key Interop Labs engineers and proprietary technology to strengthen its blockchain interoperability capabilities.
The acquisition brings the original development team behind the Axelar (CRYPTO:AXL) Network into Circle’s internal engineering organisation.
Interop Labs chief executive and co-founder Sergey Gorbunov will join Circle following completion of the deal.
“Interop Labs’s engineering and product teams represent some of the brightest minds in the industry,” a Circle spokesperson said.
Circle said the acquisition supports its goal of making digital assets issued on Arc interoperable across multiple blockchains.
Financial terms were not disclosed, but Circle expects the transaction to close early next year.
The move enhances Circle’s ability to build uniform settlement and transfer pathways between different blockchain networks.
Interoperability has become a strategic priority as stablecoins expand across increasingly fragmented multi-chain ecosystems.
Nikhil Chandhok, Circle’s chief product and technology officer, reaffirmed the company’s long-term commitment to cross-chain infrastructure.
“Circle is committed to supporting interoperability with many onchain networks, as we have with USDC and CCTP,” Chandhok said.
Circle confirmed the deal does not include Axelar’s open-source intellectual property.
“The IP we’re acquiring is proprietary to Interop Labs and excludes open-source components,” a Circle spokesperson said.
Oversight of Axelar’s open-source technology will transition to an independent group called Common Prefix.
“Axelar continues as an open-source innovator with community governance and long-term support,” Gorbunov said.
The Axelar Foundation previously disclosed selling $30 million worth of AXL tokens to fund development.
The acquisition comes as U.S. stablecoin regulation advances and issuers race to improve infrastructure resilience.
Analysts say Circle is prioritising internal engineering depth rather than rapid product expansion.
At the time of reporting, Axelar price was $0.1199.