Crypto Rally Lifts Stocks, Circle Outperforms with 20% Surge
Shares of crypto companies closed higher on May 4, as progress on the CLARITY Act compromise and Bitcoin returning to $80,000 revived risk appetite and supported the entire sector.
Summary:
- Circle (CRCL): +19.89% to $119.54.
- Coinbase (COIN): +6.14% to $202.99.
- SOL Strategies: +17.83%, BitGo: +10.26%.
- Strategy, MARA, RIOT: +2% to +3.74%.
- Main driver: progress on the CLARITY Act.
The rally was not uniform
Most stocks in the sector moved higher, but the gains were clearly uneven, with Circle significantly outperforming the rest with a 20% surge.
Coinbase added just over 6% and closed at $202.99, while SOL Strategies rose 17.83% and BitGo gained 10.26%. Companies with more direct exposure to Bitcoin saw more moderate moves, with Strategy, MARA, and RIOT posting gains in the range of 2% to 3.74%, highlighting the difference in reaction to various factors.
This divergence is not accidental and cannot be explained solely by general market momentum, as the market is effectively pricing business models differently within the same sector.
Why Circle outperformed Coinbase
The two companies react differently to the same catalyst because their revenue models are affected to different degrees.
Coinbase still relies primarily on trading fees and custody services, which are directly tied to market volumes, with regulatory clarity having more of a secondary effect on these revenues.
For Circle, the dependence is structural, as its revenue comes from reserves backing USDC, and the growth of this business is directly tied to how willing institutions are to adopt stablecoins on a broader scale.
This is where the CLARITY Act compromise changes the picture, as it removes key uncertainty and increases the potential for expanding USDC supply, which directly impacts revenue.
This also explains the difference in performance since the start of the year: Circle is up 50% year-to-date, while Coinbase remains in negative territory at -10%, according to Yahoo Finance data.
Circle’s position ahead of earnings
Circle went public in June 2025 at $31 per share, and after the latest move is trading around $119, representing a gain of over 280% in less than a year.
This surge sets high expectations for the upcoming earnings report on May 11, as investors who entered due to the regulatory catalyst will be looking for confirmation in actual financial results.
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If the data shows sustained growth in USDC supply and corresponding revenue from reserves, current levels may hold. However, if expectations diverge from reality, part of the accumulated gains remains vulnerable.
Two catalysts with different weight
The sector rally is driven by two main factors – the progress on the CLARITY Act and Bitcoin’s return to $80,000 – but their impact on individual companies is not equal.
For companies like Strategy and miners, Bitcoin’s price remains the main driver, as their business models are directly tied to the asset, explaining the more modest gains in the 2%–3.7% range.
For Circle, however, regulatory progress carries significantly more weight, as it directly affects the environment in which its core business operates, while Bitcoin’s movement plays a more complementary role.
This distinction is important because it shows which factors could sustain the rally in the coming weeks.
What will determine the next move
The coming days will be crucial in determining whether the gains will hold or prove to be a short-term reaction.
Coinbase reports earnings on May 7, and Circle on May 11 – these reports will provide the first real signals as to whether the regulatory and market momentum is already translating into business performance.
At the same time, the CLARITY Act still needs to pass further stages – committee vote, plenary vote, and final approval—meaning the market is currently pricing expectations rather than a completed process.
The companies that reacted the most strongly are also the most vulnerable in case of delays or new obstacles in the legislative process.
The information presented in this article is intended for informational purposes only and should not be interpreted as financial, investment, or trading advice. Coinspress.com does not promote or advocate for any particular investment strategy, asset, or cryptocurrency project. Cryptocurrency markets are highly volatile and unpredictable – always perform your own research and seek guidance from a qualified financial professional before making any investment decisions.
Alexander Stefanov
Reporter at CoinsPress
Alex is Editor-in-Chief of Coinspress and co-founder of Millennial Media Group, with nearly a decade of experience covering financial markets - crypto first, then everything else. It started in 2016 with Bitcoin. Like most people at the time, he didn't fully understand it - so he kept digging. Blockchain, tokenomics, the projects, the cycles. That curiosity never stopped, and eventually pulled him into traditional markets too: equities, commodities, macro. Not because he left crypto behind, but because you can't properly understand one without the other. What drives him is straightforward: he wants to know why something is happening, not just that it's happening. Most market coverage stops at the headline - price up, price down, here's a chart. Alex finds that kind of reporting actively unhelpful. If you walk away from an article without understanding the mechanism behind the move, what did you actually learn? He holds a degree in Tourism from New Bulgarian University - not the most obvious path into financial markets, but markets have a way of pulling in people who are simply too curious to stay out. He has authored over 200 in-depth analyses and more than 10,000 articles across crypto and traditional finance. He still thinks every day in markets teaches him something new. That's probably why he hasn't stopped.
