Ripple's $1.25B Power Move: How Hidden Road Could Turn XRP Into a Wall Street Giant

Ripple is constantly doing various stuff to improve its position in the financial markets. Pro-XRP lawyer John E. Deaton just pointed out a few in his recent tweet.

Pro-XRP lawyer John E. Deaton highlighted some of Ripple’s recent moves to expand its footprint in the financial markets.

As part of its broader strategy to integrate traditional finance with Web3, Ripple has been busy on multiple fronts.

Earlier this year, it completed the $1.25 billion acquisition of Hidden Road, a major broker that handles over $3 trillion each year for more than 300 financial institutions.

This deal was touted by Chamath Palihapitiya as possibly the best example of the convergence of TradFi and DeFi in all of crypto.

After the acquisition, Hidden Road began using the XRP Ledger for settling trades between institutions. This reduces the time needed for trades to settle from 24 hours to just 3-5 seconds.

Moreover, it increases the efficiency of the process by cutting down on the need for manual reconciliation.

Stablecoin To Serve As Collateral For Transactions Across Both Old And New Financial Systems

On the other hand, Ripple’s new stablecoin, RLUSD, will do more than just handle payments. It will serve as collateral for transactions across both old and new financial systems. This helps money move smoothly between digital and traditional finance.

This integration is crucial as it's often difficult for institutions to use both crypto and traditional finance at the same time.

Instead of just focusing on payments, Ripple also bought custody companies like Metaco and Standard Custody as part of a bigger plan. Now they offer “Ripple Custody,” which combines safe storage, stablecoin solutions, and payment services.

This makes it simpler for banks to use blockchain without dealing with multiple companies.

I agree with Chamath. I also believe @Ripple’s $1.25 billion acquisition of Hidden Road as possibly the best example of the convergence of TradFi and DeFi in all of crypto.

Hidden Road, a prime brokerage firm handling over $3T annually across 300+ institutional clients, now uses the XRP Ledger…https://t.co/yOJCE7zftk

— John E. Deaton (@JohnEDeatons1) August 28, 2023

The custody market is quickly expanding and could hold over $16 trillion in assets by 2030.

Anticipating this trend, Ripple is quickly moving to become a leader in this space, especially for digital versions of traditional assets.

According to Deaton, this ties into a long-term vision where Ripple aims to help banks convert standard assets like stocks, bonds, and real estate into digital tokens on the XRP Ledger.

RLUSD, Ripple’s stablecoin, would then be used to smoothly and quickly execute these tokenized asset transactions.

If successful, the XRP Ledger could become a global platform connecting all types of assets, not limited to cryptocurrency.

Relying on the vast experience he gained during the SEC case against Ripple, Deaton noted that the goal is to make it easier for institutions to use blockchain technology.

He further remarked that CEO Brad Garlinghouse seems to be making up for time lost during the SEC case.

It’s no secret that Ripple is aiming to become a leader in combining traditional finance with blockchain on a large scale.

According to Deaton, this move by Ripple to acquire Hidden Road and integrate it with the XRP Ledger is the clearest step yet in that direction.