Overview
- Evernorth signed a merger agreement with Armada Acquisition Corp II to list on Nasdaq under the expected ticker XRPN, targeting more than $1 billion in gross proceeds.
- The company says most funds will buy XRP on the open market, with an active strategy to generate yield through institutional lending, liquidity provision and participation in DeFi.
- Backers include Ripple, Rippleworks, Pantera Capital, Kraken, GSR and Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen, with SBI committing $200 million.
- Former Ripple executive Asheesh Birla will serve as CEO and leave Ripple’s board, while Ripple leaders Brad Garlinghouse, Stuart Alderoty and David Schwartz are named as strategic advisers; Evernorth says it will maintain independent governance.
- Both boards approved the deal, which targets a first-quarter 2026 close subject to shareholder votes, potential redemptions and regulatory clearance; XRP rose roughly 2–3% after the news, and one outlet reported an unconfirmed ~$500 million on-chain XRP movement linked to the effort.