Ripple CEO Denies Reported US$4–$5B Circle Acquisition Amid IPO Plans

Ripple has not made a bid to acquire Circle, the issuer behind the second-largest stablecoin in the world, USDC, according to CEO Brad Garlinghouse.

At a private event in Las Vegas, Garlinghouse told Georgetown Law Professor Chris Brummer that Ripple had never considered the acquisition and has no current interest in Circle’s business.

Brad was unequivocal—Ripple never pursued an acquisition of Circle. And while he wished the company well, it wasn’t something he was considering.

Chris Brummer, Professor at Georgetown Law

Reports of the potential acquisition broke in April, with Bloomberg claiming that Circle had rejected Ripple’s offer as too low. Coinbase then allegedly made a counterbid. However a Circle spokesperson later stated that the company is “not for sale”.

Related: Ripple–Circle Deal Could Supercharge XRP’s Role in Global Finance, Says Analyst

Stablecoin Competition Heats Up

Circle, meanwhile, is preparing for its long-anticipated IPO under the ticker CRCL, with plans to sell 32 million Class A shares priced between US$27 (AU$41.82) and US$28(AU$43.37). The IPO would value the company at US$7.2 billion (AU$11.15 billion).

Ripple, for its part, is focused on building infrastructure to support a future where traditional finance and crypto coexist. 

This includes Ripple’s US$1.25 billion (AU$1.94 billion) acquisition of Hidden Road, a global credit network and brokerage firm in April 2025 and the launch of its own US dollar-pegged stablecoin, RLUSD, in April. RLUSD currently has a market cap of US$310 million (AU$480.17 million), vastly smaller than USDC’s US$61.5 billion (AU$95.26 billion).

Garlinghouse also shared that Ripple is piloting real estate tokenisation projects with regulators in the United Arab Emirates.

Related: Ripple Buys Broker Hidden Road for $1.25 Billion, CTO Schwartz Calls it ‘Defining Moment’ for XRPL