Circle Lifts Ban on Firearm Purchases with USDC

Circle revises USDC policy, now allowing legal firearm purchases after lobbyist pressure.

Circle, the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, has revised its policy that previously prohibited the purchase of firearms. This decision follows complaints from American lobbyists.

According to the news outlet Crypto In America by journalist Eleanor Terrett, the company now permits the legal purchase of ammunition with stablecoins. The company directly informed major shooting organizations in the United States about the changes.

Previously, USDC holders were prohibited from using the asset to purchase “any type of weapon, including firearms, ammunition, knives, explosives, or related accessories.”

Conservative and gun rights groups, including Americans for Tax Reform and the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), criticized the former policy, arguing that the restrictions violated the Second Amendment to the Constitution.

In one of its articles, the NSSF accused the stablecoin of undermining liberal freedoms. The article claimed that Circle’s anti-firearm policy highlighted the risks of private transactions being controlled by financial intermediaries.

“Firearms are the only legal, constitutionally protected property right that is not associated with financial risk. Circle will not allow you to purchase them with their coins. It is unclear whether the ban extends to kitchen utensils or which types of pocket knives are also prohibited,” the authors wrote.

Political pressure likely compelled the issuer to change its terms of use. Immediately after the news was announced, several Republican senators “praised” Circle.

“The decision to allow the legal purchase of firearms with stablecoins is a confident step against the discrimination of licensed gun owners. […] Circle protects our constitutional rights and ensures that our financial systems are not used against law-abiding gun owners and legal industries,” noted Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis in a comment to Crypto In America.

The NSSF noted Circle’s swift response, which allowed them to “publicly and unequivocally state that the company does not discriminate against the legal trade of firearms.”

“[Circle’s decision] is the complete opposite of mechanisms inspired by Choke Point, aimed at halting the legislative process and secretly achieving liberal party goals,” said Tennessee Senator and author of the recently passed GENIUS Act, Bill Hagerty.

According to Komodo’s CTO Kadan Stadelmann, Circle’s actions indicate that “stablecoins are subject to the whims of the state apparatus.”

“A private company in the US cannot issue a neutral ‘stablecoin’ because it is bound by American laws, regulations, and internal affairs,” he added.

Back in October, Multicoin Capital co-founder Tushar Jain stated that the GENIUS Act would trigger a massive outflow of deposits from traditional banks to more profitable stablecoins.