Circle announced Arc's public mainnet launch on September 16. Its launch statement also disclosed the creation of 10 billion ARC tokens. Those announcements describe different things: a working network and a token-related technical milestone.
What pays for a transaction?
Arc charges transaction fees in USDC. Circle says users do not need a volatile native token to pay gas. The existence of ARC therefore does not mean ARC is required for that purpose.
What was minted?
Circle says the genesis mint created ARC's full initial supply. It describes potential security, utility and governance roles as Arc explores a transition from permissioned validation toward proof of stake in 2027.
Crucially, Circle states that the mint is not a commitment to a public ARC launch. Token creation should not be treated as confirmation of a public sale, exchange listing or distribution to users.
The current arrangement and the roadmap should be read separately: USDC pays network fees, while the possible future role of ARC remains tied to plans that can change.