Cryptocurrency company Ripple signs for Chelsea office

Blockchain technology company Ripple, which created the cryptocurrency XRP, is opening an office in Chelsea, the firm said.

The San Francisco-based company signed a 6,933-square-foot lease at the Kaufman Organization and Goldman Sachs Asset Management’s 155 West 23rd Street.

At its peak in early January, All XRP coins in circulation were worth almost $300 billion. The price crashed in recent weeks, reportedly costing co-founder Chris Larsen $44 billion on paper by Wednesday. Over the past two days the currency rallied by around 50 percent, to $1.547 as of Friday afternoon. The firm’s investors include Google Ventures, Seagate, Standard Chartered, CME Ventures, Accenture and Andreessen Horowitz.

Cushman & Wakefield’s Sebastian Infante brokered the lease. Asking rents were in the $60s per square foot and Ripple is expected to move in this quarter.

Kaufman bought the leasehold on the 12-story, 71,000-square-foot building, which is part of the former Ring portfolio, from Extell Development in 2015. The new owners spent $10 million on a gut renovation.