The issuer of the cryptocurrency XRP, the company Ripple, wanted to buy the American company Circle, which issues the stablecoin USD Coin (USDC).
Anonymous sources reported that Ripple representatives offered Circle's management to sell the company for $4-5 billion, but received a refusal. The amount was allegedly too small, and so far Ripple has not made another offer, which is why Circle plans to conduct an initial public offering (IPO) according to a plan announced in April.
Circle's press service neither confirmed nor denied the information about the impending deal, citing a lack of desire to comment on rumors. Meanwhile, as part of the IPO, the organization planned to reach a capitalization level of $4-5 billion, which indirectly confirms the information about the reality of negotiations with Ripple.
USD Coin ranks second after Tether (USDT) in the stablecoin market capitalization ranking, which stands at $61.5 billion. The digital assets Ripple USD (RLUSD), pegged to the dollar, are only in 12th place on this list, so it can be assumed that Ripple is looking to eliminate one of its main competitors in the stablecoin market by buying Circle.