Ripple is considering an initial public offering once its lawsuit with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has ended, CEO Brad Garlinghouse told CNBC.
The company issues XRP, the sixth-largest cryptocurrency in the world, to facilitate cross-border payments. Fiat is converted to XRP which decreases the cost and increases the speed of the transaction. The XRP is then converted back to fiat.
However, the SEC has alleged Ripple, Garlinghouse, and executive chairman Chris Larsen of illegal securities offering through sales of XRP. Ripple has argued that the digital coin isn’t a security — a designation that would bring it under much stricter regulatory scrutiny.
The lawsuit has been going on for nearly 15 months and Ripple expects it to end this year. After that, the company will look into a public listing.
“I think we want to get certainty and clarity in the United States with the U.S. SEC. You know, I’m hopeful that the SEC will not slow that process down any more than they already have,” Garlinghouse told CNBC during the World Economic Forum in Davos.
