- VivoPower disclosed their ambitious pivot.
- They are rebranding through the blockchain
- XRP just got a new institutional ally.
XRP has joined the race to be a key treasury asset for institutions.
VivoPower International, a sustainable energy solutions company, said Wednesday it plans to spend $121 million to buy the Ripple-linked cryptocurrency and adopt it as their primary treasury reserve asset.
Following this news, VivoPower’s shares surged 28% to a two-year high. It is still about 96% below its 2020 peak.
To finance this purchase, VivoPower plans for a private sale of the company’s equity. This private offering was led by Saudi Royal Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Abdulaziz Al Saud.
Sayloresque
The move shows how a growing number of companies are adopting Strategy’s, née MicroStrategy, Bitcoin-buying strategy.
Michael Saylor’s software company pioneered the idea of topping up its treasury with Bitcoin in 2020.
Over 100 copycats have followed suit in the years since. This week, video game retailer GameStop added 4,710, worth $502 million to its treasury, marking the firm’s first Bitcoin purchase.
It’s easy to see why. Strategy’s shares have skyrocketed almost 130% over the past 12 months.
Some firms have given the Strategy playbook a twist and gone shopping for Solana, XRP and even US President Donald Trump’s official memecoin.
What began as a fringe play by Michael Saylor’s Strategy has morphed into an institutional trend, with companies racing to lock in exposure.
A lot of the euphoria is riding on US President Donald Trump’s promises to deliver a friendlier ecosystem for crypto.
To VivoPower, the move “reflects growing institutional conviction in real-world blockchain applications,” said Adam Traidman, a former Ripple board member and executive of SBI Ripple Asia who will now serve as chair of VivoPower’s board of advisors.
The company said some of the funds will be used invest in the XRP DeFi ecosystem.
“We can see a number of potential XRP blockchain solutions for our business,” said Kevin Chin, ViviPower’s executive chair.
Ripple’s founders developed XRP and the firm uses the cryptocurrency to facilitate cross-border payments.
Zachary Rampone is a DeFi correspondent at DL News. Have a tip? Contact him at zrampone@dlnews.com
