Why Circle Says "No" to Ripple's $5 Billion Proposal

A proposal for the acquisition of Circle Internet Financial, the company behind USD Coin (USDC), is said to have been rejected. Insiders at Circle aware of the offer believe it was too low, valuing the company between $4 billion and $5 billion. Ripple has pursued the acquisition indefinitely; however, they have yet to confirm a new offer. Circle is still aiming for the IPO that the company officially filed for earlier this month. The company is seeking a valuation in the range of 4 billion USD to 5 billion USD and plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange with the ticker symbol "CRCL". Market participants view Circle's rejection of Ripple's offer as a move by management to maintain control during a critical growth phase. The spokesperson for Circle declined to comment on this article. "due to regulatory requirements and holiday time restrictions." Ripple has also not made any public comments regarding this agreement. The battle: RLUSD vs USDC Ripple launched the stablecoin RLUSD in December 2024. Although it is a latecomer, RLUSD is valued at approximately 317 million USD, ranking as the 12th largest stablecoin by market capitalization. It runs on the XRP Ledger and aims to address the liquidity issues that organizations face in cross-border payments. On the contrary, Circle's USDC still dominates, with a market capitalization of nearly 61.5 billion USD. USDC is 100% backed by US dollar reserves and is available on prominent payment networks, DeFi protocols, and centralized exchanges. Prospects of RLUSD and price stability RLUSD is a stablecoin backed by fiat currency pegged at a 1:1 ratio with the value of the US dollar and will serve as a means to secure value and protect against market volatility. And, unlike most other regulated stablecoins, it is often traded at or at least close to $1.00. However, the increasing tax volume means that usage is also on the rise, especially among organizations using Ripple's blockchain for instant payments. RLUSD is the native asset of the XRP Ledger, enabling quick and cost-effective transactions, making it suitable for cross-border payments. Its expanding circulation is also occurring against the backdrop of Ripple's efforts to compete with established rivals, including USDC and USDT. Ripple expands its network as the acquisition fails. Ripple has been seeking larger financial infrastructure solutions. In April 2025, the company completed the acquisition of Hidden Road, a major digital brokerage platform, for $1.25 billion. This acquisition allows Ripple to use RLUSD as collateral to trade institutional products and access the XRP Ledger for post-trade settlements. All are considered a reaction to Circle's unsuccessful bidding efforts and provide Ripple with liquidity channels and organizational infrastructure that the business could not previously access.

Circle is preparing for a public launch. According to the IPO of FXStreet Circle, if successful, this will be one of the largest public offerings of a cryptocurrency-related company in 2025. As stablecoins become increasingly accepted, the company is positioning itself as a viable alternative to traditional banking infrastructure and financial technology. Recently, Circle has also made waves for its efforts to expand the Circle Payment Network, enabling almost instant cross-border payments for banking partners, fintech applications, and Web3 platforms. Continue to follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn and join our Telegram channel for more news.