Fintech firm Ripple acquires global institutional credit network Hidden Road for $1.25B
In a landmark move for the digital asset industry, Ripple has announced the acquisition of prime brokerage firm Hidden Road for $1.25 billion. This deal positions Ripple as the first crypto company to own and operate an international, multi-asset prime broker, representing one of the largest mergers in the digital assets space to date.
Today, Ripple announced it is acquiring Hidden Road for $1.25B– becoming the first crypto company to own and operate a global, multi-asset prime broker. Together, Ripple and Hidden Road are bringing the promise of digital assets to institutional customers at scale, bridging…
— Ripple (@Ripple) April 8, 2025
Ripple, the San Francisco-based blockchain technology company known for its XRP cryptocurrency and enterprise payment solutions, continues to build out its institutional offerings as the digital asset sector matures. With this acquisition, Ripple aims to bridge the gap between traditional finance and decentralized finance (DeFi), signaling a significant step forward in the institutional adoption of digital assets.
Hidden Road offers 300-plus top-tier institutional clients its clearing, prime brokerage and financing services across digital assets, foreign exchange (FX), derivatives, fixed income and swaps, clearing $3 trillion annually across various markets. Backed by Ripple’s balance sheet and global infrastructure, Hidden Road is expected to scale its operations and become the world’s largest non-bank prime broker.
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said in a press release, “We are at an inflection point for the next phase of digital asset adoption — the US market is effectively open for the first time due to the regulatory overhang of the former SEC coming to an end, and the market is maturing to address the needs of traditional finance.”
He added, “With these tailwinds, we are continuing to pursue opportunities to massively transform the space, leveraging our unique position and strengths of XRP to accelerate our business and enhance our current solutions and technology.”
The acquisition strengthens the position of Ripple USD (RLUSD), Ripple’s USD-backed stablecoin, in the enterprise market, as Hidden Road will be using RLUSD as collateral with its prime brokerage service, making it the first stablecoin to facilitate efficient cross-margining between traditional and digital asset markets.
Ripple also announced that to cut costs and streamline operations, Hidden Road will migrate its post-trade processes to the XRP Ledger (XRPL).
Ripple’s broader product suite stands to benefit as well. The company plans to optimize its Ripple Payments platform — a cross-border payments solution — using Hidden Road’s capabilities while also offering bank-grade digital asset custody to institutional clients.
Hidden Road founder and CEO Marc Asch stated, “With new resources, licenses, and added risk capital, this deal will unlock significant growth in Hidden Road’s business, allowing us to increase capacity to our customer base, expand into new products, and service more markets and asset classes.
Together with Ripple, we’re bringing the same level of trust and reliability that institutional clients are accustomed to in traditional markets — designed and optimized for a digital world.”
Ripple has spent over a decade building its foundation in digital finance and holds more than 60 regulatory licenses and registrations across global jurisdictions. It also participated in Hidden Road’s Series B funding round and has been a customer of the firm.
The deal is pending regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the coming months. Industry analysts consider this acquisition a pivotal moment that could catalyze the integration of traditional financial systems with blockchain-based platforms at an unprecedented scale.
