XRP News Today: VivoPower to Buy Ripple and XRP in $100M Move Aims to Cut XRP Cost by 86%

VivoPower International, a Nasdaq-listed solar power company, has announced plans to acquire both shares of Ripple Labs and XRP tokens as part of its digital asset treasury strategy. The company disclosed this after completing two months of due diligence, with the purchase of $100 million worth of Ripple securities expected to be sourced from existing shareholders, pending management approval [1]. Kevin Chin, the company’s executive chairman and CEO, stated that the strategy aims to optimize yield and reduce the weighted average cost of XRP acquired [1].

The move positions VivoPower as the first publicly traded U.S. firm offering investors exposure to both Ripple equity and XRP directly. To manage the custody of the digital assets, the company is expected to collaborate with BitGo. Additionally, Nasdaq Private Market, Ripple’s designated partner for private share transactions, will facilitate the share purchases [1]. According to the firm, an independent auditor will review its Ripple holdings on a quarterly basis [1].

The company claims that combining the acquisition of Ripple shares and XRP will bring the average cost per XRP down to approximately $0.47, a 86% discount to current market prices. This estimation is based solely on Ripple’s XRP holdings and does not include the value of the company’s other business segments [1]. Furthermore, every $10 million in Ripple shares purchased could add roughly $5.15 per share in value for VivoPower shareholders, although this remains subject to market fluctuations [1].

The announcement led to a 32% surge in VivoPower’s stock, pushing the share price to $5.10 by the end of the trading session on Friday [1]. Ripple, the creator of XRP, has continued to gain traction in the market, with several institutions recently adopting its services. South Korean custodian BDACS, for instance, launched a regulated custody service for XRP and RLUSD in partnership with Ripple [1]. Meanwhile, Japanese credit card company A Plus has partnered with SBI VC Trade to enable customers to convert reward points into XRP, BTC, ETH [1].

In a significant regulatory development, Ripple concluded its five-year legal battle with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Both parties filed a Joint Stipulation of Dismissal with the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, effectively ending all appeals in the case. This resolution marks the end of a legal dispute that began in December 2020, when the SEC accused Ripple of selling unregistered securities in the form of XRP [1].

XRP’s price has shown slight gains, rising 0.14% over the past 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap data, currently trading at approximately $3.29 [1].

Source: [1] VivoPower says it also has plans to acquire XRP (https://coinmarketcap.com/community/articles/6897671144beda47641583a3/)