Ripple Acquires Hidden Road, Reduces Settlement Times 99.9%

Ripple has made significant strides in the crypto industry, particularly with its recent $1.25 billion acquisition of Hidden Road, a prime brokerage firm. This acquisition is seen as a pivotal moment in the convergence of traditional finance (TradFi) and decentralized finance (DeFi). Hidden Road processes over $3 trillion annually for more than 300 institutional clients, and by integrating with Ripple’s XRP Ledger (XRPL), settlement times have been reduced from 24 hours to just 3–5 seconds. This integration highlights Ripple’s commitment to enhancing the efficiency and speed of financial transactions, a key advantage of DeFi over TradFi.

Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin now serves as collateral for trades, directly linking blockchain infrastructure to institutional trading workflows. This move positions Ripple at the forefront of institutional DeFi by combining the speed of DeFi with the reach of TradFi. The acquisition of Hidden Road is just one part of Ripple’s broader strategy to expand its presence in the crypto custody market. In addition to acquiring Metaco, Ripple has also purchased Standard Custody and launched “Ripple Custody” to offer institutions a comprehensive suite of services, including payments, stablecoins, and asset storage.

The push into custody is driven by the anticipated tokenization boom. With the custody market expected to grow significantly by 2030, Ripple is building the necessary tools for banks to tokenize various assets, such as stocks, bonds, or real estate, using the XRPL. The RLUSD stablecoin will power these transactions, further solidifying Ripple’s position in the market. This rapid expansion is seen as Ripple making up for lost time after its lengthy legal battle with the SEC, which has now been resolved. The company is now focused on leveraging its technological advantages to drive growth and innovation in the crypto industry.