Ripple Makes Power Play: Offers to Acquire Circle, USDC Stablecoin Giant

Ripple just fired a shot across the crypto stablecoin wars—launching a bid to buy Circle, the issuer of the $30B USDC empire. If this goes through, XRP’s parent company could suddenly control one of the dollar-pegged tokens propping up DeFi.

Why it matters: Stablecoins are the oil in crypto’s engine, and Ripple wants to own the refinery. This isn’t just about payments anymore—it’s a land grab for the plumbing of Web3 finance.

The twist: Circle was prepping an IPO. Now Ripple might derail those Wall Street dreams with a bags-of-crypto offer. Nothing says ’disruption’ like cutting out the middlemen... only to become the middleman yourself.

Ripple Proposes $5 Billion Bid to Buy Circle as Stablecoin Issuer Eyes IPO

The ongoing growth of the stablecoin industry has been undeniable. Indeed, the total market capitalization of the asset class has officially surpassed the $241 billion mark. With favorable digital asset regulation being at the forefront of incoming US policy, that should only continue to grow.

As Tether’s USDT offering continued to lead the way, two of its biggest competitors came close to a game-changing merger. Specifically, Ripple has reportedly offered to purchase USDC stablecoin issuer Circle in a $5 billion bid that was rejected by the company.

According to Bloomberg, the offer to acquire the firm was made earlier this month. Additionally, Ripple has considered a follow-up offer as Circle has its sights set firmly on an initial public offering filing made in April. “We do not comment on market rumors,” a Circle spokesperson said in response to the report.

Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin currently holds a market cap above $316 million, while Circle’s USDC has a market value of about $61.7 billion. Conversely, Circle has not been shy about its intention to go public. Indeed, the company reiterated that its “long-term goals remain the same” in a recent statement.