Ripple announced the acquisition of the institutional lending and brokerage platform Hidden Road for $1.25 billion.
According to the press release, the transaction ranks among the largest in the digital assets sector. It will bolster the ecosystem, including the RLUSD stablecoin, the XRPL blockchain, and the Ripple Payments service.
The deal is expected to close in the coming months, pending regulatory approval.
Ripple has become the first crypto company to own and operate a global multi-faceted prime broker, project representatives noted.
Hidden Road processes $3 trillion in annual transactions and serves over 300 institutional clients. Ripple plans to leverage the resources and licenses of its new subsidiary to scale its business and enter new markets.
According to Hidden Road founder and CEO Mark Ash, the deal will allow for the expansion of new product offerings and asset classes.
Ripple stated that Hidden Road will use RLUSD as collateral, making the stablecoin the first to enable efficient cross-margin trading between traditional and digital assets.
Hidden Road’s post-trade activities will also be migrated to XRPL, strengthening the blockchain’s user base.
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse described the deal as a significant step towards expanding institutional participation in the digital economy.
XRP Growth
According to a report by Standard Chartered, the token’s value could surge to $12.5 by 2028, writes CoinDesk. By the end of 2025, it is expected to rise to $5.5, and by 2026, to $8. Analysts predict that the XRP rate will continue to increase amid high demand for cross-border payments.
The report noted: XRPL assumes the role of an “accelerator” for international transfers—much like stablecoins. This makes XRP an important tool for financial operations outside traditional banking systems.
Standard Chartered sees potential in the asset’s growth similar to that of Bitcoin. Additional drivers will include changes in the leadership of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The possible approval of token-based exchange-traded funds from Ripple will also have a positive impact.
Among XRPL’s challenges, analysts highlighted a limited number of developers and a low level of “value extraction.” However, these factors are offset by growing interest in asset tokenization and expanding potential in the digital payments sector.
At the time of writing, XRP is trading at $1.95 (+8.8% over the day), according to CoinGecko. The token ranks among the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, with a figure of $114.13 billion.
Back in March, Ripple agreed to withdraw its counter-appeal against the SEC following the conclusion of the litigation.
On April 8, alternative asset management firm Teucrium Investment Advisors introduced the first XRP-ETF in the U.S.