Circle partners with INFINIOS to enhance digital finance infrastructure in Middle East

Circle, the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, has entered a strategic agreement with Bahrain-based fintech INFINIOS to expand digital finance infrastructure across the Middle East, targeting cross-border payments and stablecoin integration across the Gulf Cooperation Council. The partnership pairs Circle’s global stablecoin capabilities with INFINIOS’s regional Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) and payments expertise — a combination that brings a Mastercard principal member together with one of the largest private stablecoin issuers.

"When a Mastercard principal member starts settling in USDC and partners with the coin's issuer, that's integration into the financial mainstream, one API connection at a time," the companies said in commentary accompanying the announcement.

INFINIOS, headquartered in Bahrain, offers digital banking and payment solutions via APIs and has been building regional credentials for several years. In 2021 the firm partnered with the Commercial Bank of Dubai to expand BaaS capabilities in the UAE, and in 2023 it launched Mastercard’s first wholesale travel program in the MENA region. In December 2025 INFINIOS struck a deal with Mastercard to adopt stablecoin settlement capabilities specifically for USDC and EURC, enabling stablecoin-based funding and payments across the region. In May 2026 the company signed a memorandum of understanding with AX Coin to develop regulated wallet infrastructure aimed at encouraging stablecoin adoption across GCC countries.

Circle’s regional push has mirrored that of INFINIOS. The company incorporated an entity within the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) in late 2024 to establish a regulatory foothold in the UAE, and appointed Dr. Saeeda Jaffar as Managing Director for its MEA operations. Circle has also partnered with LuLu Financial Holdings to power USDC-based remittances in the region, underlining a clear focus on cross-border payments and remittance corridors linking Gulf states with labor-exporting nations.

Why the Gulf matters

• Bahrain and the UAE have developed comparatively welcoming regulatory frameworks for digital finance; Bahrain’s central bank was an early regional leader in establishing a dedicated fintech regulatory sandbox.
• The ADGM has positioned itself as a hub for digital asset regulation, creating a local environment for entities like Circle to incorporate and operate under clearer rules.
• GCC economies remain deeply interconnected by trade, labor migration and energy exports, where correspondent banking frictions—multiple intermediaries, multi-day settlements and stacked fees—create practical demand for faster, cheaper settlement rails.

The deal between Circle and INFINIOS seeks to address these frictions by enabling stablecoin settlement through established payment rails managed by a Mastercard principal member. The partnership is presented as incremental: technical integration via APIs and regulated wallet infrastructure to bring stablecoins into mainstream payment flows.

Outlook: competition in the region is intensifying. Tether and local stablecoin initiatives are pursuing similar ambitions, and the evolving regulatory landscape in the Gulf remains a variable — particularly if central bank digital currencies gain traction and compete for the same payment corridors. For investors and payments players, the Circle–INFINIOS tie-up represents a concrete step toward operationalizing USDC in Gulf markets, but it also raises strategic questions about interoperability, regulatory change and competitive responses from both incumbents and new entrants.