Ripple plans to spend $5 billion to acquire USDC, Circle: Not for sale, we want to IPO
The battle for stablecoins has reached the core asset level.
Ripple recently proposed an acquisition of Circle for $4-5 billion, attempting to 'buy' USDC, a stablecoin giant with a market cap of over $60 billion, to accelerate its path to RLUSD. However, Circle directly refused and chose to pursue an IPO, continuing on its independent path.
What is the logic behind this? Ripple wants to leverage Circle to seize the narrative power of stablecoins, binding cross-border payments + dollar settlement logic; Circle is more focused on its financial valuation potential in traditional markets.
This battle is not just a competition between two projects, but a game for the on-chain dollar anchoring rights.
It is worth noting that stablecoins have become a 'new payment mechanism' in the eyes of the US Treasury, with mainstream issuing institutions collectively holding $120 billion in treasury bonds, which may surge to $900 billion in the future.
Once stablecoins truly drain bank deposits, US Treasury bonds will rely on on-chain dollars for 'self-circulation'. Whoever controls stablecoins may control the next stage of the dollar issuance system.
By 2030, the market value of stablecoins may exceed $2 trillion, and the divergence between Circle and Ripple may just be the prologue.
