Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on October 20, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Evernorth, backed by Ripple, aims to raise $1 billion via Nasdaq listing to acquire XRP tokens, merging with Armada Acquisition Corp II.
By Ateev Bhandari and Arasu Kannagi Basil
(Reuters) -Evernorth, a new crypto venture backed by digital asset firm Ripple, said on Monday it will list on the Nasdaq through a merger with blank-check firm Armada Acquisition Corp II and is expected to raise more than $1 billion in proceeds.
The digital asset treasury will focus on accumulating XRP, a token linked to Ripple and the fifth-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, according to data from CoinGecko.
The move comes months after Wall Street's top regulator ended a high-profile crypto lawsuit, which accused Ripple of selling unregistered securities to institutional investors.
Under a crypto-friendly Trump administration, Ripple is looking to scale institutional adoption and presence of the XRP token in capital markets.
The deal, expected to close in the first quarter of 2026, will create the largest XRP publicly traded XRP treasury company, Evernorth said.
As scores of companies continue to wrap crypto assets into equity, concerns are mounting over the spillover impact of a correction in the equities markets. Earlier this month, crypto assets suffered from their largest selloff ever after U.S. President Donald Trump escalated his trade war with China.
"I lost track around how many (asset holding plays) are there around Ethereum," Evernorth CEO Asheesh Birla, a former Ripple executive, told Reuters in an interview. Birla added that he will be stepping down from Ripple's board as he joins Evernorth's.
Japanese firm SBI, which was previously affiliated with SoftBank, is providing $200 million of the raise in exchange for equity.
"We will look at acquisition opportunities," Birla said, adding that Evernorth will be hiring and building out an investment team as well.
The deal also saw participation from Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen and digital asset firms Pantera Capital and Kraken, which have a track record of funding such strategies.
(Reporting by Ateev Bhandari and Arasu Kannagi Basil in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)
XRP is a digital currency created by Ripple Labs, designed for fast and cost-effective international money transfers.
A Nasdaq listing refers to a company's shares being traded on the Nasdaq stock exchange, known for its technology-focused companies.
A merger with a blank-check company involves a private company merging with a publicly traded shell company to access capital markets.
Cryptocurrencies are digital or virtual currencies that use cryptography for security and operate on decentralized networks based on blockchain technology.
Institutional adoption refers to the acceptance and integration of digital assets or technologies by large organizations and financial institutions.
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