CEO Ripple Brad Garlinghouse commented on the investment rating assigned by Kroll Bond Rating Agency (KBRA) to Ripple Prime’s brokerage division.
Clear validation of @Ripple Prime’s strength, reliability and tech with today’s investment grade issuer rating from Kroll. Momentum builds when markets recognize these things. https://t.co/WjGi14OuaZ
— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) April 2, 2026
According to him, the decision was a “clear validation of the platform’s strength, reliability, and technology.”
In October 2025, Ripple completed the acquisition of non-bank prime broker Hidden Road for $1.25 billion and rebranded it as Ripple Prime.
KBRA assigned the structure a BBB rating—the lowest tier of investment grade, indicating “average quality” creditworthiness with moderate risks.
Agency analysts emphasized that Ripple Prime is in a phase of active growth, focusing on clearing and brokerage services in the derivatives and repo markets. They noted that the platform:
- is a registered broker-dealer and FCM in the United States;
- deals with exchange-traded derivatives and short-term government bonds, targeting institutional clients;
- rapidly increased its balance sheet and turned profitable in 2025.
A significant factor in the rating was the support from the parent company:
- Ripple invested about $500 million following the announcement of the purchase of Hidden Road;
- the company plans further investments in the subsidiary, holding $5 billion in cash and “large reserves of XRP.”
However, KBRA pointed out several limitations, such as revenue concentration in a narrow segment of financial operations and weak business diversification. The agency’s specialists also cited the close ties between Ripple and the crypto industry as a risk. This could negatively impact the company’s profits, which may be “sensitive to price volatility and liquidity conditions, especially during a prolonged downturn in the digital asset market.”
XRP’s value has dropped more than 28% since the beginning of the year. The token is trading near $1.3—almost 64% below its all-time high of $3.65, recorded in July 2025. The asset’s market capitalization is approximately $81 billion. (CoinGecko).
Earlier, Garlinghouse predicted “record results” for Ripple by the end of the first quarter.