Celsius is in the midst of a bankruptcy process and Ripple Labs wants to take advantage of this. The parent company of cryptocurrency XRP is considering buying assets from Celsius.
Ripple wants to know more about Celsius
A Ripple spokesperson told Reuters that the company is “interested in learning more about Celsius and its assets, and whether they may be relevant to our business.” The spokesperson went on to say that Ripple is “actively looking” for M&A opportunities that will “strategically scale the company.”
No public response yet Celsius
It is not clear from the conversation whether Ripple is interested in acquiring Celsius in its entirety. It is also not confirmed whether talks are ongoing between the two crypto companies. So far, Celsius has not commented publicly.
On July 13, Celsius filed for bankruptcy and began developing a recovery plan. Part of this plan was that the judge approval would have to give in order to be able to draw up a takeover procedure.
Will Ripple come up with a qualified bid?
Anyone interested in buying Celsius assets should follow this procedure. That involves contacting Celsius’s advisors, signing a nondisclosure agreement, and structuring a bid to pass as a “qualified bid.”
A requirement of such a qualified offer is $5 million or 10% of the fiat value, which will be held in an account until the sale is complete. If there is no competition, the bidder wins, otherwise an auction is held.
Ripple not creditor to Celsius
Ripple’s attorneys filed three filings on Aug. 5 to participate in Celsius’s bankruptcy proceedings. However, these files do not indicate why Ripple became involved in the case or whether its involvement is related to its takeover plans. Reuters says Ripple is not a major creditor to Celsius.
On June 5, Brad Garlinghouse, the CEO of Ripple, told CNBC that the company has a very strong balance sheet. He says Ripple is in a phase of growth where it will be a buyer rather than a seller. The interest in Celsius fits well with Garlinghouse here:
“I think there will be an upsurge in mergers and acquisitions in the blockchain and crypto space. We haven’t seen that yet. But I think it is likely in the future. And I definitely think as that unfolds, we’d consider things like that.”
