Circle, the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, is reportedly exploring a potential sale to Ripple or Coinbase, according to a Fortune report. The company is seeking at least $5 billion, aligning with its target valuation for an initial public offering (IPO). These discussions occur as Circle continues to plan its IPO, initially filed on April 1.
Ripple reportedly made an offer between $4 billion and $5 billion to purchase Circle on April 30, but it was rejected. A deal with Ripple would involve cash and XRP, while Coinbase would use cash and stock. Coinbase and Circle have a history, launching the Centre Consortium in 2018 to establish standards for fiat-backed stablecoins like USDC.
Bitwise predicted in December 2024 that 2025 would be a significant year for crypto IPOs. On May 12, Cointelegraph reported that Bitcoin was 4.8% away from its all-time high of $109,800, while Ether, XRP, and Solana have also seen gains. eToro, after its IPO on May 14, saw its stock price jump 29%.
This article is based on our author's analysis of materials taken from the following resources: Fortune, Cointelegraph, and Google Finance.