Ripple Labs plans to repurchase $285m stake in tender offer

Ripple Labs initiated a $285 million share buyback, valuing the company at $11.3 billion, amid regulatory uncertainties.

On Jan. 10, Ripple Labs, a cryptocurrency company famous for XRP, announced a buyback of $285 million in company shares from early investors and employees, valuing the firm at $11.3 billion. The tender offer allows investors to sell up to 6% of their stake.

Confirming the buyback, Ripple disclosed plans to allocate $500 million for the repurchase, covering the conversion of restricted stock units into shares and associated taxes.

Ripple aims to conduct regular share buybacks to enhance liquidity for investors and has no immediate plans to go public in the U.S., citing regulatory uncertainties, as stated by CEO Brad Garlinghouse. The company currently holds over $1 billion in cash and more than $25 billion in crypto, mainly XRP coins.

This move follows Ripple’s recent legal victory against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), where a U.S. District Judge ruled that XRP sales on public exchanges were not unregistered securities offerings.

Established in 2012, Ripple focuses on developing a payment system that facilitates cross-border transactions, promoting the use of XRP. Despite challenges posed by the SEC lawsuit, Garlinghouse noted that 95% of their customers are non-U.S. financial institutions.

As of Wednesday, XRP’s market cap stands at $30 billion.