Key Takeaways
- Asheesh Birla led the Oct. 14 ceremony at Nasdaq MarketSite.
- Evernorth raised about $300 million in gross cash proceeds at closing.
- Deployment with Ripple, Kraken, Coinbase, and Bitgo is planned for Q4.
Nasdaq Ceremony Highlights Publicly Traded XRP Exposure
Stock investors’ access to an actively managed XRP treasury took the spotlight as Evernorth Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq: XRPN) rang the Nasdaq closing bell Oct. 14. Founder and CEO Asheesh Birla led the ceremony at Nasdaq MarketSite in New York’s Times Square, celebrating the digital asset treasury company’s debut as a public company.
Nasdaq Exchange highlighted Evernorth’s role in providing investors with XRP exposure through a publicly listed structure in an Oct. 14 post on X. Investors buying XRPN acquire shares in the company, with exposure shaped by its holdings, investment decisions, financing, and operating performance.
The celebration followed Evernorth’s completed business combination with Armada Acquisition Corp. II on Oct. 9. At closing, Evernorth held approximately 473 million XRP and had raised about $300 million in gross cash proceeds before transaction expenses. Armada was a special purpose acquisition company formed to take another business public.
Active Management Targets Growth in XRP Per Share
The merger combined cash financing and XRP contributions from institutional and digital asset investors, including Arrington Capital, SBI Group, Ripple, Pantera Capital, Kraken, and GSR. Armada’s shareholder vote approving the proposed merger on Sept. 30 preceded the Oct. 9 closing.
Management’s active XRP treasury strategy seeks to increase XRP holdings per share through institutional investment strategies, decentralized finance, ecosystem participation, and capital markets activities. XRP per share measures token holdings relative to outstanding stock, making changes in the share count relevant alongside growth in the treasury’s total assets.
Investment oversight rests with Chief Investment Officer Hugo Jeandesboz, a former Coinbase Asset Management co-chief investment officer who reports to Birla. His responsibilities span allocation, liquidity management, active treasury management, and relationships with trading counterparties and custodians.
Evernorth Names Ripple, Kraken, Coinbase, and Bitgo as Deployment Partners
The ceremony coincided with Evernorth’s Oct. 14 announcement of Ripple, Kraken, Coinbase, and Bitgo as institutional execution partners. The company plans to accumulate XRP and deploy treasury assets into institutional strategies beginning in the fourth quarter. Its initial phase will use established counterparties under the oversight of Evernorth’s investment and risk team.
Expansion into decentralized finance would involve financial activity conducted through blockchain-based systems, including lending and trading applications. Evernorth intends to allocate capital directly to XRP Ledger markets as native lending and credit capabilities are activated by validators and demonstrated in production. That phase remains dependent on the network’s financial infrastructure maturing.
The company selected its initial partners based on institutional infrastructure, licensing, capitalization, and experience serving public companies and asset managers. Evernorth noted that partnership agreements remain subject to customary closing conditions and required regulatory and corporate approvals.
