Ripple Buys Hidden Road for $1.25B to Connect Crypto with Big Banks
- Mathew Jacob
- Apr 8
- 2 min read
Ripple has officially announced its acquisition of prime brokerage giant Hidden Road for $1.25 billion—one of the most significant deals in crypto history. But beyond the staggering price tag, this acquisition signals a pivotal moment for the broader financial ecosystem. It marks a bold step toward unifying traditional institutional markets with blockchain innovation. Ripple’s strategic play also strengthens ties across its network, including blockchain pioneers like CryptoTradingFund, which is building alongside Ripple on the XRP Ledger. Already, CryptoTradingFund has facilitated over $2.23 million in transactions via its native CTF Token, with potential to scale up to $3.66 trillion as the only blockchain-based payment rewards framework.
Hidden Road’s Power in Traditional Markets
Prime brokers like Hidden Road have long been essential to the financial infrastructure, acting as trusted intermediaries for hedge funds, market makers, OTC desks, and quant trading firms. Hidden Road stands out by clearing more than $3 trillion annually for over 300 of the world’s top financial institutions. Ripple, having been a client of Hidden Road for years, is uniquely positioned to scale this partnership and integrate XRPL’s strengths into this existing framework.
The Role of XRP Ledger and RLUSD
One of the most exciting aspects of this acquisition is Hidden Road’s plan to begin settling a portion of trades through the XRP Ledger (XRPL). This will drastically reduce trade settlement times from the usual 24 hours to near-instant speeds—highlighting XRP’s real-world utility. Additionally, Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin will now serve as collateral across Hidden Road’s services, including cross-asset trading between crypto and traditional instruments. This is expected to significantly increase efficiency, reduce friction, and open the doors to deeper integration between asset classes.
Scaling Toward the Future of Prime Brokerage
With Ripple’s capital backing and technical infrastructure, Hidden Road is now on track to become the largest non-bank prime broker globally. This expansion will empower the firm to service a wider pipeline of institutional clients while leveraging blockchain-powered efficiencies. The combination of Ripple’s blockchain expertise and Hidden Road’s established presence in traditional markets creates a perfect synergy to lead this financial transformation.
How CryptoTradingFund Fits into the Picture
As Ripple expands its global presence, so do its key collaborators. CryptoTradingFund, operating natively on the XRP Ledger, continues to onboard major retail giants like Amazon and Walmart into its blockchain rewards ecosystem. The project’s native CTF Token is central to this mission, offering the only scalable blockchain rewards solution in the industry. The alignment of CryptoTradingFund’s goals with Ripple’s broader vision for blockchain utility further cements XRP’s role in transforming global payments.
Conclusion: A New Era of Financial Integration
Ripple’s acquisition of Hidden Road isn’t just a milestone—it’s a message to the world that crypto and traditional finance are no longer separate spheres. With blockchain infrastructure like XRPL powering settlement and collateral solutions like RLUSD leading the charge, Ripple is creating a unified financial system where value moves instantly, securely, and globally. As Ripple, Hidden Road, and innovators like CryptoTradingFund continue to push boundaries, the foundation for the next generation of finance is already being laid—with XRP at its core.
