Prominent blockchain-based digital payment company Ripple has disregarded claims that it planned to acquire stablecoin issuer Circle. Brad Garlinghouse, the firm’s CEO, pushed back on rumors suggesting that the firm was in talks with Circle and in the process of establishing an acquisition deal. Georgetown law professor Chris Brummer, who interviewed Brad Garlinghouse at the Ripple Las Vegas Conference, took X to summarize their interaction. “Brad was unequivocal that Ripple didn’t pursue an acquisition of Circle. (Update: one response suggests that Brad really said that Ripple never offered 10B for Circle, so perhaps Ripple floated an offer at another price point). Perhaps! Whatever the case, his main point was clear: while he wished Circle well, he wasn’t considering any acquisition.” Brummer wrote. Garlinghouse’s assertion clarifies the ongoing conversation among market participants. Last week, insider sources disclosed that Circle was engaging in “informal” talks with Ripple and Coinbase about a potential acquisition deal. While Circle and Coinbase did not address the rumors, both firms have established longstanding relationships through crypto-based partnerships. Ripple throws weight behind RLUSD stablecoin Meanwhile, Ripple appears to have its gaze set on accelerating the capabilities of its RLUSD stablecoin. The firm’s $1.25 billion acquisition of prime brokerage platform Hidden Road suggests that the firm is set to position the stablecoin as on-ledger collateral, to memorialize transactions on the XRP Ledger, Bummer asserted. “This is infrastructure thinking—boring to some, but foundational to all.” He noted . Brummer further highlighted the UAE’s engagement with Ripple on tokenized real estate, along with the Ripple CEO’s visit to the SEC—an experience that Garlinghouse describes as “personal,” explaining that both developments reflect Ripple’s interest in merging the cryptocurrency ecosystem with the traditional finance industry. “Ultimately, I walked away with a sense that Ripple isn’t chasing a world where crypto replaces TradFi. It’s betting on a world where the two are hybridized—where tokenized assets, stablecoins, and traditional financial institutions coexist and interoperate. If they’re right—and I think they are— then that means that the next wave of acquisitions won’t just be AMMs or token launchers.” The professor asserted.
