Evernorth Holdings Inc., a treasury company focused on XRP, announced on May 5, 2026, a significant expansion of its leadership team with new board members and senior executives as it moves toward a public listing through a merger with Armada Acquisition Corp. II, a Nasdaq-listed special purpose acquisition company. The appointments are designed to bolster the firm's institutional credibility and support its strategy of offering regulated XRP exposure to investors.
Key Board Appointments Including Ripple CLO
Stuart Alderoty, Chief Legal Officer of Ripple, is expected to join Evernorth's board of directors after the business combination closes. Alderoty has served as Ripple's top legal officer since 2019 and as president of the National Cryptocurrency Association since 2025. His prior experience includes senior legal roles at CIT Group Inc., HSBC North America Holdings Inc., and American Express Company. CEO Asheesh Birla commented: "As Evernorth prepares to operate as a public company, we are building a leadership team with the institutional credibility this model demands."
Other identified board candidates include Dr. Derar Islim, who brings experience in digital asset market structure and institutional credit from his roles at Antalpha and Genesis Global Trading; Ted Janus, with over 30 years of investment experience including at J Capital and Palo Alto Investors; and Robert Kaiden, former Chief Financial Officer of the OpenAI Foundation and former Chief Accounting Officer of Twitter. On the executive side, Boris Kapeller has been appointed Chief Risk Officer, while Charles Stewart takes on the role of Chief Communications Officer.
Distinctive XRP Public Treasury Strategy
Upon completing the merger with Armada II, Evernorth plans to offer investors exposure to XRP through a regulated, liquid, and transparent public company structure. Unlike an XRP exchange-traded fund (ETF), Evernorth intends to actively enhance the XRP value per share through institutional yield and DeFi strategies, ecosystem participation, and capital markets activities. The company has filed an S-4 registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) targeting a Nasdaq listing, and has outlined a multi-billion dollar XRP cash strategy supported by Ripple.
This leadership expansion marks a critical transition for Evernorth from a private XRP holder to a regulated public treasury firm. The new team is tasked with ensuring the company can serve institutional investors at scale, driving mainstream adoption of XRP. With the listing process underway, Evernorth could become the first publicly traded company centered on XRP, setting a precedent for the convergence of digital assets and traditional finance.