[4] The company held its first auction outside Canada in 1970, in Beaverton, Oregon, and gradually began expanding throughout the United States.

[5] In 1974, John Ritchie left the company, selling his share of the business to his brother Dave.

[4]: 46 In the late 1980s, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers began to look overseas for further growth opportunities, in the UK and the Netherlands, and then in Australia and other countries.

In 1998, the year that Ritchie Bros. went public, the company's annual gross auction proceeds exceeded US$1 billion for the first time ever.

In 1999, Ritchie Bros. acquired Forke Brothers, an equipment auction company based in Nebraska, USA and one of its major competitors.

[12] In August 2021, the acquisition of Euro Auctions, a Northern Ireland auction house that buys and sells industrial plant, construction equipment, and agricultural machinery for £775 million was announced.

In March 2023, Ritchie Bros. completed the acquisition of U.S. auto retailer IAA Inc. in a stock and cash deal worth $7 billion.

Jim Kessler was appointed Ritchie Bros.' CEO after the departure of Ann Fandozzi in December 2023 due to a dispute over equity compensation.